Towards a sustainable framework for road infrastructure management and maintenance scheme in south East Nigeria

Abstract

The construction sector is critical in the economic growth of any country. Nigeria is faced with the need to provide adequate road infrastructure. Regardless of Nigeria’s enormous human and natural endowments, the road infrastructure within the country is in a poor state, especially in South-East Nigeria. This research aims to identify Public-Private Partnership (PPP) as a panacea for inadequate road infrastructure development schemes in South-East Nigeria. An in-depth literature review was carried out to explore the benefits of PPPs in the delivery of road infrastructure in South-East Nigeria. Findings from the literature review showed that PPP allows the government to concentrate on policy making while the private sector carries out the role of infrastructure maintenance and operation. It also allows the private sector to generate income through user levy or contract sums. The review identifies high cost and complexity as challenges facing PPP implementation. It further showed that PPP has been successful in countries like Sri Lanka, South Africa, India, the United Kingdom and even South-West Nigeria. The key recommendations of the research is that the existing PPP regulatory framework be reviewed, a transparent procurement process be put in place, and proven PPP models such as Build-Own Operate-Transfer (BOOT) and Build-Own-Transfer (BOT) be explored for road infrastructure delivery in South-East Nigeria.