Current procedures in Ghana’s construction industry appear not to be properly streamlined, which has led to all manner of construction activities.

As part of efforts to forestall the collapse of high-rise buildings and subsequent casualties, the BUSAC Built Environment Steering Committee has advocated the establishment of a regulatory authority.

Rockson Dogbegah, Chairman of BUSAC Built Environment Steering Committee, who was speaking at a stakeholders’ forum held yesterday in Accra, said, “One of the ways by which we can reduce unemployment is by strategically positioning construction to serve as a catalyst for economic growth.

“We are under-developed so it means there are more construction projects to be undertaken. If we position construction correctly, each project will create a chain of jobs and economic activities and we can agree to reduce unemployment by a certain percentage and use construction activities to achieve that.”

He said the construction industry accounts for 10 percent of Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Expressing gratefulness to BUSAC for funding the forum, he called on the sector minister and Government to partner contractors to effectively sanitize the built industry.

Research shows that the legal framework of the construction industry is very weak.

As a result of the low capacity of indigenous contractors and the pervasive corruption in the industry, there are fears that foreign contractors might take over Ghana’s construction industry in the near future, if the aforementioned loopholes are not plugged.

“It is for this reason that we need a Construction Industry Development Authority (CIDA) in the country because Singapore, Malaysia and South Africa all have such national regulatory bodies.”