Assessment of the Prospects and Challenges of E-Procurement Practices on Construction Project Delivery in Abuja, Nigeria.

Abstract

Over the years, companies trading in the construction sector have sought to deliver quality projects and improve efficiency and effectiveness in their operations and services tostakeholders. The utilisation of e-procurement in other industrial sectors like manufacturing and retail has, for sometime, been widespread, but to date is considered a relatively new phenomenon in construction. However, what e-procurement strives to achieve is far from new. This paper therefore assessed the extent to which e-procurement systems is practiced in Abuja, Nigeria, it examined the prospects of e-procurement practices in Abuja, Nigeria and also examined the challenges of e-procurement practices in Abuja, Nigeria. The methodology of study involved descriptive survey research in which structured questionnaire were randomly administered to study population of construction industry professionals in Abuja, Nigeria. Data obtained in the study were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistical methods. The findings showed that E-payment is the most practiced e-procurement system by construction professionals in Abuja, Nigeria. The results of the industry survey have also identified eleven e-procurement prospects in which elimination of direct human interaction on bidding, internal efficiency increase, productivity improvement, improved effectiveness of purchasing process and reduced paperwork were top ranked. Additionally, e-procurement systems having technical problems, clients’ lack of experience, lack of experts for system vendors and customers’ lack of trust for the e-procurement systems were the top ranked challenges out of the twelve identified. It is believed that the findings of this study will encourage a wider adoption of the various e-procurement systems in Abuja and across Nigeria as well towards achieving successful construction project implementation.