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The funding invested in infrastructure construction in low-income countries (particularly the countries of sub- Saharan Africa) does not benefit contractors, suppliers and workers from those countries as much as it might. Increasing the input of local labour, goods and services could make a major contribution to economic growth and the achievement...
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... is now widely accepted that sustained economic growth is necessary for alleviation of poverty and achievement of the United Nations (UN) millennium development goals (MDGs). However, the extent of poverty reduction will depend upon the degree to which the poor participate in the growth process and share in its proceeds. Increasing the input of local labour, goods and services (local content) in infrastructure construction could make a major contribution to economic growth. At the same time it would open up opportunities for the poor to participate in the growth process through the creation of jobs in the construction and supply industries. Building capacity and promoting local content in the delivery of infrastructure projects should therefore be a high priority for many low-income countries, particularly those of sub-Saharan Africa. However, few countries have a clear policy for the promotion of local content in infrastructure construction; those that do often have difficulty implementing it. The paper is directed primarily at least developed countries, most of which are in sub-Saharan Africa. It has two objectives ( a ) to show policymakers that expanding the local content of infrastructure projects is an achievable objective with real long-term benefits ( b ) to provide practical guidance to assist governments to achieve this through actions at various stages of the procurement cycle. Part 1 of this double paper focuses on promoting local content as a policy objective and addresses the following questions. ( a ) What is meant by local content? ( b ) Why is it important to promote local content in African construction? ( c ) Why is it necessary to use procurement to achieve this? ( d ) What are the key challenges? Part 2 (Wells and Hawkins, 2010) will provide options to address the challenges and achieve specific policy objectives of ( a ) increasing employment throughout the construction supply chain ( b ) increasing work for local contractors ( c ) creating market openings for locally produced materials and components. While any of the proposed actions may be adopted on any individual projects, together they constitute the elements of a national policy for promoting local content in public construction procurement. Local content is a recognised term in the oil and gas industry. It can be defined in terms of the ownership and/or location of enterprises involved in production and/or the value added in the production process. Local content in infrastructure construction is taken here to include the involvement of local enterprises and labour in planning, design and construction services, as well as the local added value in transactions occurring throughout a contractor’s supply chain. Local in this context is understood to mean national, but it could be defined to mean any geographic or administrative area. Infrastructure is defined to mean the physical assets needed for the delivery of a service, rather than the provision of the service. Procurement is broadly defined to encompass all stages from the identification of need to the delivery and subsequent maintenance of the asset (Figure 1). It should be noted that promoting local content is not the same as capacity building, although there is a relationship ...
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Citations
... The challenges facing LCFs are not significantly different from those in other developing countries [68,46]. Despite the remarkable growth of the construction industry in developing countries over the years, the funding invested in infrastructure development does not benefit LCFs as much as it ought to be [32,74]. Pheng and Hou [59] stated that the presence of foreign contractors in the developing countries' markets is one significant factor posing an existential threat to LCFs. ...
Risks in construction projects can be dynamic and complex in nature. Construction projects continue to succumb to the impacts of these varied risks thus requiring innovation in risk management practice (RMP). Like most developing countries, the South African Construction Industry (SACI) is not an exception in terms of consistent record of project failures. To date, there are different practices in risk management that are being utilised across the SACI. However, there are knowledge gaps in the RMP that require an agile approach for improving project delivery within the SACI. Furthermore, it is vital to note that agile approaches ensure inter alia constant improvement and innovation, as opposed to traditional methods. As such, introducing an Agile RMP (ARMP) tool is essential to transform the SACI in terms of project delivery success as findings have shown. This exploratory literature review-based study is aimed to analyse the effectiveness of traditional Risk Management (RM) methods and assess the need for an ARMP approach relative to improving project delivery within the SACI using eleven (11) snowball sampled articles. Through content analysis, the study revealed the need for further research on agile methods and training among others. However, this requires an in-depth investigation and inputs from stakeholders in the future. In so doing, this will reduce the effects of prevalent risk management’s knowledge gaps among project stakeholders. Furthermore, it is vital to introduce digitalisation-enable innovative agile methods for identifying and assessing risks that affect the construction projects whilst stipulating pragmatic training tools essential for improving the project delivery. Ultimately, the formulation of an ARMP framework appropriate for the SACI will contribute to sustainable construction projects.KeywordsAgile risk management practiceProject deliveryRisk managementRisk management practiceSouth African construction industry
... The challenges facing LCFs are not significantly different from those in other developing countries [68,46]. Despite the remarkable growth of the construction industry in developing countries over the years, the funding invested in infrastructure development does not benefit LCFs as much as it ought to be [32,74]. Pheng and Hou [59] stated that the presence of foreign contractors in the developing countries' markets is one significant factor posing an existential threat to LCFs. ...
This paper considers the need for a clear legal and policy framework to guide a more sustainable construction industry and the use of digital technologies. It commences with an analysis of the meaning of sustainable development and briefly reflects on the three components of sustainable construction industry. The paper argues that while much has been written on the environmental aspect there has been more limited engagement with the social component of sustainable development. It critically analyses decent work deficits in the construction industry and the role of law and technology in addressing these deficits. In so doing it follows a doctrinal and legal research methodology. The paper argues that while the benefits of certain digital technologies for safer construction industry are undeniable, there is not much certainty on the extent to which the construction industry is legally obligated to adopt such technologies. Ultimately, it considers that codes on corporate social responsibility could play a valuable role where they operate alongside clear legal frameworks to guide the construction industry in the adoption of such technological tools. These technological tools are then to be used as part of a broader commitment to promoting a sustainable construction industry in which there is decent work for all. It concludes with recommendations for legal reform to guide a more sustainable construction industry.KeywordsSustainable developmentDecent workOccupational health and safetySocial insuranceSocial protection
... The challenges facing LCFs are not significantly different from those in other developing countries [68,46]. Despite the remarkable growth of the construction industry in developing countries over the years, the funding invested in infrastructure development does not benefit LCFs as much as it ought to be [32,74]. Pheng and Hou [59] stated that the presence of foreign contractors in the developing countries' markets is one significant factor posing an existential threat to LCFs. ...
South Africa, like many other developing nations, faces significant challenges in delivering effective and fair public services. Africa in particular suffers from a catastrophic shortage of public infrastructure, and a variety of factors contribute to the infrastructure deficit. Public entities around the world are battling with effective service delivery and have adopted different models to enhance and improve infrastructure delivery. However, the models currently deployed have shortcomings, thus frustrating the efforts to deliver infrastructure effectively to the general populace. South Africa has similarly had its fair share of false starts. The 2010 introduction of Infrastructure Delivery Management System (IDMS) was specifically to facilitate effective, timely and sustained infrastructure development, and tackle the challenges in public sector infrastructure delivery. The study employs a multi-case study, qualitative approach through content analysed data to look at four nations that implements infrastructure projects in Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa and analyze the advancement of infrastructure delivery. A systematic review of infrastructure delivery models/reforms in the context of public sector was carried out through literature and descriptive analysis was applied. The findings reveal a knowledge vacuum about the diverse techniques taken by various countries in the execution of public sector infrastructure projects, and provide little precise evidence on the performance of delivery systems and lessons learned. It is here recommended that interventions such as IDMS should be contextualized cognizant of the country’s developmental imperatives.KeywordsReformsInfrastructureDeliveryConstruction industryPublic sector
... The supply chain, whether in public or private sector institutions, is one of the key channels to deliver Local Content Development programs, especially those related to training, employment, localization of industries, and development of local suppliers (Ado, 2016;L. Johnson, 2016;Wells, J., & Hawkins, 2010). ...
Given the pressures of global changes, productive approaches to use local resources present a pathway to sustain or improve living standards. One of these productive approaches is the Local Content Development (LCD) policy.
... Foreign investment projects may be organised in very different ways depending on the type of technology involved, the availability of local supply chains for the creation of backward linkages, the investment strategy and the policies that regulate investments (Tsani, 2020;Wells and Hawkins, 2010). Local content refers to those services, materials and capital goods used to deliver the project that are local rather than imported, divided into direct content (in the project) and indirect content (in local supply chains). ...
... The degree to which local firms and related actors can use investments in renewable energy to develop their own technolog-Job creation -Types of jobs in contracts -Local jobs in project construction -Local jobs in project operation -Local jobs in project maintenance -Local jobs in other project services (Pahle et al., 2016;Suberu et al., 2013) Local content -Involving local firms and local supply chains -Involving local universities and other knowledge institutions -Involving local communities -Access to infrastructure (Hanlin and Hanlin, 2012;Hansen et al., 2020;Wells and Hawkins, 2010) Technological learning -Transfer of embodied or disembodied knowledge -Inbound flows of equipment, designs/blueprints and management frameworks -Interaction between supplier of the above and the local user -Training of local staff -Local staff secondment and training (Bell, 2012;Ockwell and Mallett, 2013) 4 The concern with what we have called 'economic co-benefits' has a long history in development economics. Much of it was conducted using the externalities and linkages frameworks (Hirschman, 1958;Scitovsky, 1954) which highlighted the importance of economic co-benefits but struggled with rigorous measurement and comparison. ...
... To address the impacts of projects on local content, we draw on literature on the local industrial development impacts of infrastructure projects in low-income countries in particular in sectors such as energy and extractives (Hanlin and Hanlin, 2012;Wells and Hawkins, 2010). Infrastructure projects are large-scale and capital-intensive and typically involves foreign investors, developers and technology suppliers from abroad. ...
Investments in renewable energy are increasing rapidly in sub-Saharan Africa. The overall purpose of this paper is to explore to what extent and under what conditions these investments are producing economic co-benefits in terms of spillovers and linkage development effects. One peculiarity of Africa's renewable-energy sector is the rapid increase and likely future growth of Chinese involvement in large-scale renewable-energy infrastructure projects. Insights from other infrastructure, utility and resource-extraction sectors in sub-Saharan Africa suggest that China is pursuing a specific Chinese model of investments characterised by enclave characteristics and including finance, turnkey project development and the importation of labour and equipment from China. Hence our focus in this paper is to determine to what extent economic co-benefits are created when renewable-energy projects are developed by Chinese investors. To do this, we undertake an in-depth analysis of three Chinese renewable-energy investment projects in hydro, wind and solar PV, based on primary data. Overall, we find evidence of 'bounded benefits'. On the one hand, we can identify some newly created jobs, linkages generated with actors in local systems of production and training activities involving local staff. On the other hand, the extent of these benefits is very limited. Overall, the results suggest that policymakers should be wary of overly optimistic expectations when it comes to assessing the co-benefits of renewable energy projects in the context of scarce pre-existing capabilities. However, the adoption of pro-active strategies and the implementation of carefully designed policies can increase the local economic co-benefits.
... Foreign investment projects may be organised in very different ways depending on the type of technology involved, the availability of local supply chains for the creation of backward linkages, the investment strategy and the policies that regulate investments (Tsani, 2020;Wells and Hawkins, 2010). Local content refers to those services, materials and capital goods used to deliver the project that are local rather than imported, divided into direct content (in the project) and indirect content (in local supply chains). ...
... The degree to which local firms and related actors can use investments in renewable energy to develop their own technolog-Job creation -Types of jobs in contracts -Local jobs in project construction -Local jobs in project operation -Local jobs in project maintenance -Local jobs in other project services (Pahle et al., 2016;Suberu et al., 2013) Local content -Involving local firms and local supply chains -Involving local universities and other knowledge institutions -Involving local communities -Access to infrastructure (Hanlin and Hanlin, 2012;Hansen et al., 2020;Wells and Hawkins, 2010) Technological learning -Transfer of embodied or disembodied knowledge -Inbound flows of equipment, designs/blueprints and management frameworks -Interaction between supplier of the above and the local user -Training of local staff -Local staff secondment and training (Bell, 2012;Ockwell and Mallett, 2013) 4 The concern with what we have called 'economic co-benefits' has a long history in development economics. Much of it was conducted using the externalities and linkages frameworks (Hirschman, 1958;Scitovsky, 1954) which highlighted the importance of economic co-benefits but struggled with rigorous measurement and comparison. ...
... To address the impacts of projects on local content, we draw on literature on the local industrial development impacts of infrastructure projects in low-income countries in particular in sectors such as energy and extractives (Hanlin and Hanlin, 2012;Wells and Hawkins, 2010). Infrastructure projects are large-scale and capital-intensive and typically involves foreign investors, developers and technology suppliers from abroad. ...
The world is in the early stages of a paradigm transition toward a global green economy. In this article, we propose the notion of green windows of opportunity, highlighting the importance of institutional changes in the creation of new opportunities for latecomer development. We emphasize how demand and mission-guided technical change influence the directionality of latecomer development and highlight the important role emerging economies may attain in the global green transformation. We provide important insights regarding opportunities for green development in emerging economies, how these opportunities emerge in different renewable energy sectors and their implications for the global green economy.
... Large, publicly managed infrastructure projectssuch as-of which large-scale wind and solar PV farms-provide a targeted way in which governments can develop local skills and capabilities that can go on to work on, and even manage, other similar projects in the future. This is a mechanism that is not new but has been promoted in infrastructure projects in the USA, China and Singapore for some time (Wells and Hawkins, 2010). Unfortunately, issues of corruption have often been cited as hampering such efforts in African large-scale infrastructure projects (Appolloni and Nshombo, 2014). ...
This paper discusses the prospects for developing production and innovation capabilities arising from renewable electrification efforts. This discussion falls at the intersection of several literatures within innovation studies and development studies. It requires a combination of ideas from across several academic fields of study. This paper focuses on value chain linkages and interactive learning. Because this is largely unexplored terrain, the paper seeks to provide conceptual framing based on insights from the literature and it discusses whether linkages within the global South offer specific advantages over North-South linkages. It then uses this conceptual framing to draw insights from the case of renewable electrification with wind and solar PV in Kenya. It ends by identifying key avenues for promoting interactive learning in this context.
... There are also the more labour intensive job roles within the construction industry that will be especially effective in reducing local unemployment in the areas in which projects are implemented (DECC, 2011:2). A pre-existing network of localised SMEs therefore possesses the flexibility to be able to incorporate these evolving opportunities, allowing for the coordinated embedding of increased provision for EE delivery (Wells & Hawkins, 2010), as well the localised conditions best able to create jobs and facilitate regional benefits (Mitchell et al., 2011). In this context the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) anticipate that this mix of local companies will also possess strong customer insight, able to target interested customers more effectively than a top down government scheme (DECC, 2010). ...
By applying theoretical supply chain configurations to the case study of Birmingham, this paper analyses the extent to which Green Deal implementation has facilitated green economy growth through the development of regional energy efficiency retrofit service capacity. It finds that the delivery approach of Birmingham Energy Savers in contracting a single Green Deal provider has prevented effective integration of SMEs into local value chains, whilst also failing to drive effective economies of scale. This is compounded by national Green Deal policy issues. This paper's findings have implications for ongoing Green Deal implementation, advocating for the use of multiple regional Green Deal providers to facilitate organic industry expansion through tailored local targeting.
... J. Production Economics 144 (2013) 20–43 21 construction industry to be synonymous with the concept of partnering , but at the same time particularly problematic for organisations to implement due to specific contextual factors . Wells and Hawkins ( 2010 ) , however , were able to establish that the procurement process plays a major role in supply chain coordination in the construction industry compared to manufac - turing . Moreover , a construction company is often more dynamic and changeable in its supply chain compared to supply chains in other industries . ...
Interest in energy efficiency has risen rapidly in the last few years. In particular, Government institutions have launched several initiatives for improving housing energy efficiency through the implementation of retrofitting measures. As a result, the UK Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Services (EERS) market (estimated at around £2bn in 2010) has significant growth potential related to such large government initiatives. Despite this rapid growth in interest, research into the EERS sector has historically been limited, especially concerning supply chain implications. The supply chain of the EERS sector involves multiple stakeholders. It involves public and private bodies as a significant portion of work is undertaken within large publicly funded projects. This research is the first to examine empirically and theoretically the distinctiveness of the supply chain configurations in the EERS sector. A Delphi-like method is adopted to collect a wide range of data from the organisations operating in the EERS supply chain and government bodies (Local Authorities) in the Yorkshire and Humber region in the UK. These data were used to capture and characterise the EERS sector in the region. Stakeholder theory is used to theorise on the public–private interaction mechanisms shaping the supply chain structure in the EERS sector. Three ideal types of supply chain configurations were identified based on the size and scope of the energy efficiency retrofitting project. The influence of these configurations on the performance of the supply chains was also explored.
... There are literally different reports devoted for the definitions of local content, which is a recognized term in the oil and gas industry. It can, generally, be specified in terms of the ownership and/or location of the enterprises involved in production and/or the value-added in the production process (Wells & John, 2008). Local content development in petroleum industry is a new concept, which has drawn academic attention in recent years. ...
A novel concept, local content, in oil industry is gradually emerging. Local content should be defined in terms of value addition in local country (by local staff, local materials, local services and facilities) rather than in terms of ownership of the company performing the value added activities. Many oil exporting countries have taken a positive approach toward local content development to maximize the benefits from oil and gas extraction. The purpose of this study is to develop a conceptual model for local content development in petroleum industry. Local content can generally be defined in terms of the ownership and/ or location of the enterprises involved in production and/ or the value-added in the production process. Local content promotion will have to vary significantly between countries, depending on the current status of their economic, political and social development. This model is useful for state governments to consider all aspects and factors affecting local content development generally. Local content development outcomes are economic growth, industrial growth and spillover effects. The paper begins with examining the factors accommodated in literature believed to influence the local content promotion. Based on our review, the conceptual model derived includes key factors of local content that evaluate local content development, and examine interrelations between local policies, local infrastructure, local environment, and local capability.
