Influence Of Risk Management Strategies On Completion, Cost And Quality Of Road Infrastructure Development Projects In Nairobi City County, Kenya

ABSTRACT

The World Bank estimates a 10% rise in infrastructure assets through major infrastructure like road projects. Road infrastructure development projects however have a history of problems which are caused by; cost overruns, delays, failed procurements, or unavailability of private financing. In Kenya, many road construction projects are not completed within the initial set time which negatively affects the cost and quality of road construction projects. Effective risk management strategies allow a project manager to identify the project’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. It is therefore important for infrastructure development projects to incorporate risk management into their projects. Despite this critical requirement, little is known about the influence of risk management strategies on cost, time and quality of completed road infrastructure development projects in Nairobi County. In scenarios where the information is available, it is held up in silos by a few in an organization and not really comprehended by all. The main objective of this study was therefore to assess the influence of risk management strategies on completion of road infrastructure projects in Nairobi County. A cross-sectional research design was adopted for this study targeting a sample of 75 road construction firms and risk managers selected from a total of 208 registered road construction firms in Nairobi County. Stratified sampling was used to select 57 local, and 14 foreign firms together with 4 other firms which had both local and foreign characteristics in their structures. One risk manager was interviewed per firm using structured questionnaires. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and association between variables was analyzed through cross-tabulation using chi-square tests and linear regressions. Risk avoidance was the most adopted type of management strategy and the main management strategy to mitigate all the risks. Avoidance of risks, mitigation of risks and acceptance were significantly associated with timely completion of road projects. Mitigation of risks, exploitation, sharing, and acceptance was significantly associated with the completion of road projects within the budget. The findings will enable the Ministry of Roads and Public works and Transport sector to work together with other stakeholders involved in road infrastructure development projects to address these risks.