Tue, 20 Feb 2018 11:21:22 +0000
By MOSES SINJWALA .
Zambia has capable con- tractors who would put up quality works although they have challenges in accessing financing and equipment, National Council for Construction (NCC) Public Relations Officer, Chama Mwansa has said.
Ms Mwansa said Zambian constructors were more than capable to deliver on projects especially where no major initial monetary injection was required.
She said local constructors had reasonable capacity in terms of knowledge and skills adding that the only major challenge was access to affordable financing and equipment
“As NCC we have trained numerous contractors in various courses. Our local contractors have made great strides in terms of capacity to handle bigger projects, this is attested by the increased number of Zambian firms that are registering in higher grades especially Grade 2,” she said.
She explained that NCC grading scale ranged from 1-6 with grade 6 being the entry point while Grades one and two included foreign registered contractors with the rest reserved for local contractors.
She was reacting to sentiments expressed by Minister of National Development and Planning, Alexander Chiteme on Diamond TV that Zambian contractors lacked seriousness as most of their works were shoddy.
But Ms Mwansa explained that NCC had blacklisted a number of contractors for failure to perform to the required standards.
“The client who of course should have met their obligations to the contractor in a timely and efficient manner as per agreed schedules and then of course these two having been adequately met. If the contractor is then found wanting then appropriate action is taken against them as prescribed in the National Council for Construction Act,” said Mrs. Mwansa.
