Capacity building in emerging economies through international construction ventures-case study of the NMPP project

Although International Construction Joint Venture (ICJV) projects are believed to be beneficial with regard to aiding capacity building in the local construction industry, it is still debatable, whether such skills and technology transfer effectively occurs in the hosting companies in emerging economies. Substantial research on technology and skills transfer from developed country construction companies to emerging counterparts reveals worrying trends. South African construction companies are therefore not immune to these undesirable trends. Three main issues are dealt with in this paper: whether foreign partnering company have knowledge and technology that the local partner is lacking; how international construction joint venture projects are structured at delivery stage; and what are the key strategic elements of expertise transfer in an international construction joint venture project relating to organisational structure. The study used case studies to identify, analyze and establish the relationship between interaction in the work place and collaboration in job tasks. Finally, the paper proposes a conceptual project delivery structure that can accelerate the transfer of expertise in the South African Construction Industry (SACI).