— Lists inferior materials, faulty designs

By Dayo Johnson
Akure

The newly inaugurated President of the Association of Professional Women Builders of Nigeria (APWBN), Builder (Dr.) Grace Omojola, has identified quackery, faulty designs, poor workmanship and the use of inferior materials as major causes of recurring building collapse in Nigeria.

Omojola spoke in Akure, the Ondo State capital, during her investiture as the fifth president of the association.

She said building collapse could not be attributed to a single factor, noting that several failures could combine to cause structural defects.

“Collapse of building is not just a thought of an individual. So many factors contribute to it when a building collapses,” she said.

Omojola listed wrong designs, poor workmanship, inferior materials and quackery among the challenges confronting the building industry.

“You know, different people want to become a builder, a contractor and call themselves a builder. We have many professionals in the building industry that have different roles to play.

“So, when all these professionals play their role, there will be a reduction in building collapse,” she said.

She stressed the need for professionals in the built environment to properly discharge their respective responsibilities to curb structural failures.

Women’s participation

On women’s participation in the building industry, Omojola called for greater inclusion of women in the traditionally male-dominated profession, saying they should not be relegated.

She said the association was using mentoring, innovation and entrepreneurship programmes to empower women and create opportunities for them to thrive.

According to her, the association was also encouraging female artisans to participate actively in the activities of the Institute and contribute their skills to the industry.

She added that entrepreneurial programmes were being introduced to equip women with additional skills and improve their acceptance and economic participation.

“The built environment, as we all know, is dominated mainly by men. But women are really trying to come up through mentoring and different innovative programmes we are coming up with as Association of Professional Women Builders.

“We are to empower women in different perspectives. Even the artisans, we are encouraging the women artisans to participate in the activities of the Institute,” she said.

Omojola urged women in the profession to demonstrate commitment and excellence to make meaningful progress in the industry.

Ethics, poor supervision

In his keynote address, Prof. Kolapo Eleka, a professor of building and registered builder, also identified ethical lapses and lack of professional excellence as major factors contributing to building collapse.

Eleka said the use of substandard materials and poor supervision were also ethical issues that could contribute to structural failure.

“When you make use of substandard materials, it’s still an issue of ethics; when there is a case of poor supervision, it’s a case of ethics,” he said.

He called on regulatory bodies to strengthen monitoring and enforcement to identify and remove unqualified practitioners from the industry.

Eleka also linked the rising cost of building materials to attempts by some developers to cut corners, warning that pushing materials beyond acceptable limits could result in structural failures.

He urged the government to subsidise local production of building materials rather than focusing mainly on imports, saying this would help reduce costs and discourage the use of inferior materials.

New leadership

In her remarks, Chairman of the occasion, Princess Olufunmilayo Ademulegun-Brown, who was represented by the Commissioner, Ondo State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr Oyelade Olanrewaju, congratulated Omojola and urged her to lead the association with wisdom, humility and courage.

Ademulegun-Brown called on members to give the new president the necessary cooperation to move the association forward.

Also speaking, the immediate past chairperson, Builder (Dr.) Margaret Sati Shuarka, said her administration launched the association’s official website and its maiden online journal, which has been indexed in Google Scholar.

Shuarka urged the new leadership to protect the association’s vision of promoting professional excellence and leadership for sustainable shelter, build partnerships and mentor young female builders to sustain the association.