By Ayo Taiwo

A new academic review has highlighted how emerging digital technologies could help developing countries tackle long-standing problems in infrastructure maintenance and asset management.

Published in the International Journal of Research Publication and Reviews, the study — “Integration of Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Digital Twins for Lifecycle Cost Optimisation in Mega Projects” — examines how global digital tools can close information gaps that fuel ageing public assets, rising maintenance backlogs, and weak documentation.

Authored by Dagmawi Girma, Joy Aryan, and Shehab Aldeen Mohammed Mohsen Albaadani, the review notes that over 90% of mega projects suffer cost overruns and fail to deliver expected benefits, largely due to fragmented data, outdated records, and poor coordination across project stages.

The paper explains that BIM offers a digital design-phase model, while Digital Twins provide a continuously updated version once an asset is operational. Together, they create “a comprehensive, data-oriented model” covering design, construction, operations, and decommissioning.

By merging real-time data with initial project information, the study finds that owners can detect faults earlier, reduce unexpected repairs, and improve budgeting. Evidence cited in the review shows that BIM-DT integration can cut lifecycle costs by 20–40% through predictive maintenance.

But implementation remains slow due to high startup costs, technical interoperability issues, and institutional resistance, limiting many efforts to pilot schemes rather than full-scale adoption.

While based on global examples, the findings reflect challenges common in many African cities, where rapid growth and tight budgets weaken asset monitoring. The authors argue that stronger digital record-keeping could help governments make better investment and maintenance decisions.

Lead author Dagmawi Girma said the study was motivated by the reality that many infrastructure systems operate with limited or unreliable data. “We wanted to examine whether better information coordination could reduce uncertainties in planning and operational decision-making,” he said.