Abstract

The failure of infrastructure projects in the municipal environment across South Africa has increased due to various factors. The study sought to understand the root causes of infrastructure project failures in municipalities, critical success factors to address failures and the impact of the failures. The research followed a quantitative approach which used survey questionnaires developed through a literature review as the baseline. The research was administered using Microsoft Forms (Internet Survey) where participants were requested to complete the questionnaires online to provide their opinion on project failures within the municipal environment, focusing only on local municipalities in Gauteng province. The study results indicated that contractors are the leading cause of project failure in municipalities, and what is evident is that cashflows and inaccurate costing during the tender stage are the main factors leading contractors to fail to implement projects. This was also linked to the client’s failures, where it was identified that awarding the project to the lowest bidder led to project failure. Municipalities need to ensure that due diligence and screening of contractors’ financial viability are conducted before awarding tenders. The analysis revealed that the contractor’s ability to deliver quality work was the leading success factor in order of importance, followed by developing a realistic project budget. It was also identified that cost overruns, loss of grant funds, and time overruns were the top three effects of project failures.