Volume 15, No. 4, 2021
Received: 2020/10/28, Accepted: 2021/08/13
Authors:
Nouman Khadim; Syed Taseer Abbas Jaffar;
Abstract:
Construction projects are capital -and labour- intensive with complex financial profiles. Due to this inherent
complexity, construction projects are adversely affected by corruption, especially in underdeveloped countries.
To emphasize the seriousness of the issue and to eradicate corruption in construction projects, a comprehensive
understanding of the effects of corruption is needed. Therefore, the current study examined the impacts of
corruption on public infrastructure projects (PIPs) in the corrupt context of a developing country. 27 impacts
of corruption were identified through an extensive literature review and expert interviews. To rank these factors,
a structured questionnaire survey was carried out to collect empirical data from different contractual parties
working in various construction projects in Pakistan. The results demonstrated that corruption is widespread in
the local construction industry and has harmful impacts on projects and society in the forms of the creation of
monopoly, increased procurement and maintenance costs and lower-quality products. The results also revealed
that the construction community believes that corruption is beneficial in that it reduces time delays and can
motivate workers. The findings of the study contribute to an in-depth understanding of the consequences of
corruption in public infrastructure projects. This information would be useful for project personnel,
stakeholders and engineering society to enhance awareness among the parties for eradication of corruption in
construction.
Keywords:
Corruption, Pakistan, Public infrastructure, Corruption in construction, Construction
management