Masters Graduands

FACTORS AFFECTING TIME AND COST PERFORMANCE OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN RWANDA. A Case Study of High-Rise Building Projects in Kigali.

Highrise building projects are naturally complex due to the involvement of numerous parties and Most multi-storey buildings in Rwanda encounter problems and the issues of performance such as extensive schedule and budget overruns.

The research objectives were: To identify factors causing significant delays in Highrise building projects, to find out factors causing significant cost overrun in Highrise building projects and to propose strategy to minimize the causes leading to significant delay and cost overruns in high Highrise building projects.

The findings revealed that variations of design change , late payment to contractors, delay in decision making, delay in receiving clearances through customs for the imported materials, financial difficulties encountered by contractor are the main cause of time overrun in Highrise building while variation in the cost of construction materials, Frequent change in specifications and designs, inaccurate cost estimation , high cost of transport of construction materials and poor contact management were ranked as major cause of cost overrun. The recommendation of this study were: the funding of the project by client should always be adequate and be determined at the planning stage of the building project, The architects must select the most economical design for basic elements without compromising the quality and safety of the project Rwanda Institute of Architects (RIA) (Quantity Surveyors Chapter) should produce semi-annual journal containing cost data of construction materials in different locations of Rwanda because the techniques used to produce estimates vary according to the information available at the time of preparation.

Research Supervisors

Prof. H. Gichunge, PhD

Dr. Luke Obala, PhD

THE ROLE OF RURAL MARKETS IN RURAL DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE OF FUNYULA MARKET IN FUNYULA SUB-COUNTY, BUSIA COUNTY.

ABSTRACT

Rural markets havestrong potentials which lead to an increasing growth course that culminates into sustainable development in rural areas. However, instances of poor market integration due to poor policies and poor market conditions  have hampered growth especially within the surroundings. This research aimed at finding out the role of rural markets on the hinterlands, to identify the challenges affecting development of linkages between markets and the hinterland and to recommend solutions for improving the linkages between the markets and the hinterland. The research narrowed down to Funyulamarket in Funyula rural centre. The market provided readily accessible outlets for produce from the hinterland. The hindrances to hinterland development included the lack of capital resources, poor accessibilityand lack of infrastructure to support the production and sale of agricultural produce. It was evident that the potential for the Funyula hinterland to support Funyula market had not been fully exploited. This led to the market relying of supplies from external regions thereby denying the development of the hinterland. Solutions to challenges faced at the market and in the hinterland included coordination of programmes for both urban and rural development.

Research Supervisors

Dr. Samuel Obiero

IMPACTS OF UNIVERSITY LOCATION ON RURAL NEIGHBORHOOD LAND USE A CASE OF KENYA METHODIST UNIVERSITY MAIN CAMPUS IN MERU COUNTY

The research study was to assess land use changes, characteristics and development patterns and determine the socio-economic impacts of KEMU main campus neighborhood in the last fifteen years and propose spatial planning interventions for organized development. Data collection was through literature review,interviews of Households and key informants, mapping, observation, photography and focused group discussions. The data was analyzed using SPSS. Among notable land uses were residential, commercial, transportation, recreational and educational. Agricultural land use was the dominant land use prior to the establishment and growth of the university. Benefits and negative impacts from land use change were examined. The study recommends strategies on enforcement, food security and green infrastructure for sustainable university neighborhood.

Research Supervisors

DR FRIDAH WILUMILA MUGO

PLANNING FOR AGRO –INDUSTRIES IN RURAL COMMUNITIES: THE CASE OF KINANGOP SUB-COUNTY, NYANDARUA COUNTY.

Research Supervisors

PROFESSOR  ISAAC KARANJA MWANGI

THE STATUS AND CHALLENGES OF UNIVERSAL ELECTRICITY CONNECTIVITY IN URBAN INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS, A CASE OF SILANGA IN KIBERA INFORMAL SETTLEMENT, NAIROBI, KENYA.

Access to electricity and connectivity has been a challenge facing informal settlements despite being receptors of new migrants to urban areas and cities. The electricity grid in Kibera is poorly connected, leaving many households and SMEs without formal power connectivity. The study sought to assess the status, connectivity challenges and planning interventions that could be applied towards universal connectivity in Kibera. The study used open and closed ended questionnaires to interview 161 households and 150 business premises. Key informant interviews and focus group discussions were conducted for the vulnerable women and youth groups. The study found that 84.9% of the households had electricity compared to 79.3% of the business premises. Electricity connection rate for both businesses and households was high along the main roads where electricity lines run and lower into the interior of the slum. There were both formal and illegal connections in the study area. Illegal connections were higher at households than for business at 6.1 and 4.2 percent respectively. High electricity connection fees and huge monthly bills were the major challenges to electricity connection in Silanga. Other notable challenges to power connectivity were the poor and unplanned housing structure layout, poor land tenure systems, denial of wayleaves consentsand inaccessible of the network due to the narrow streets. The study recommends subsidization of slum electrification programs, lower connectivity fees paid in instalments, relax application rules and through public participationand stakeholders’ engagement upgrade the slums.

Research Supervisors

DR. ROMANUS OPIYO

“An Investigation Into Effects Of Zoning Variance On Real Estate Investments: Case Study Of Office Investments In Upperhill Area, Nairobi City County”.

Zoning variance is the deviation from an area’s zoning regulations that is granted by the planning authority upon meeting certain key requirements. The researcher set out to investigate the effects of zoning variance on the performance of commercial office investments. The general objective of the study was to investigate the effects of zoning variance on commercial office investments. Literature reviewed indicated that a lot of research has been undertaken on factors affecting real estate investments such as location, economy and property factors, effects of zoning variance on zoning regulations and urban character among others. Therefore, there is a knowledge gap on the effects of zoning variance on the performance of real estate. Review of relevant literature identified asking and achieved rents, occupancy levels and selling prices as the key commercial office investments performance indicators. 

Upperhill area was used as the case study area because it accommodates high density commercial developments whose plot ratio and ground coverage deviate from the most recent zoning regulations. Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected with the key informants being property owners/developers, physical planners, estate agents active in Upperhill area and the Nairobi City County. Random and purposive sampling techniques as well as key informant interview were adopted in the study. Data was analyzed by use of Excel Spreadsheet and results presented in simple tables, graphs and figures. The key finding of the research was that zoning variance affects the performance of commercial office investments. A correlation analysis established that zoning variance contributes 54%, 45% and 34% of the changes in asking rent, achieved rent and occupancy level respectively. The rest of the percentage change is attributable to the other factors identified during literature review, i.e economic, location and other property factors.

The study also established that the use of zoning variance in development of commercial office was prevalent in the case study area and that most key industry players were not aware of the minimal mandatory requirements for zoning variance approval. The research made the following recommendations to help control the issuance of zoning variance; boost public and key stakeholder awareness on zoning variance and continuous research in the field of zoning and zoning variance among others. This study is organised into five chapters which are Introduction, Literature Review, Case Study and Research Methodology, Data Analysis and Presentation and finally Conclusions and Recommendations.

Supervisor

Dr. Jennifer Murigu

AN INVESTIGATION OF PERFORMANCE OF PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS TOWARDS PROVIDING LOW COST HOUSES IN KENYA (CASE STUDY OF NAIROBI CITY COUNTY)

Kenya is faced with significant housing deficit for low-income earners. Public private partnerships could therefore be considered as a possible alternative solution to address the existing shortage. The study sought to investigate the performance of PPPs as a mechanism of providing low-cost houses in Kenya. The objectives included; evaluating forms of PPPs used in Kenya, investigating benefits of PPPs versus Traditional Procurement Methods (TPMs) used in Kenya, identifying challenges facing PPPs and methods which would promote uptake of PPPs towards providing low-cost houses in Kenya. Questionnaires were administered to respondents drawn from public and private sectors.

The findings indicate that there was slow uptake of PPPs in Kenya. Design-Build-Finance-Operate-Transfer was mostly used form of PPPs. The benefits of PPPs over TPMs in order of priority were; timely completion and cost-effective projects, providing value for money, improved efficiency and utilization of modern technology. Challenges which have affected delivery of low-cost houses using PPPs in order of priority included; financial constraints, high cost of land, frail institutional capacities, low acceptability of PPPs by public and private sectors, inflexible regulatory and poor governance structures. The study further found out that policy framework for PPPs emphasizes regulation as opposed to promotion of PPPs and enhancing capacity of implementing agencies.

The study recommended enhanced budgetary allocation, establishment of housing fund, adoption of modern equipment and innovative construction technologies, creation of construction banks with favourable terms and conditions compared to commercial banks. The study proposed establishment of public awareness programs to stimulate the uptake of PPPs.

Supervisor

DR. ISABELLA NJERI WACHIRA-TOWEY