Causes of schedule delays in construction projects in Algeria

The construction industry is a major sector in the economy of developing countries. During the last two decades in Algeria, many large-scale construction projects have been launched to develop the basic infrastructure facilities of the country. However, most of these projects experience extensive delays. The objective of this paper is to identify the causes of delay in the Algerian construction industry and assess their importance according to the main project stakeholders, which are the owner, the contractor and the consultant. Data were collected through a questionnaire and direct interviews of a sample of construction experts including 16 owners, 16 contractors and 20 consultants. Fifty-nine causes of delay were identified in this research. The results indicate that the five most important causes are slow change orders, unrealistic contract duration, slow variation orders in extra quantities, delays in payment of performed work and ineffective planning and scheduling by contractors. The study revealed that owner-related causes are the most important sources of delay. The findings of this research can be used to guide the improvements of the construction industry in Algeria.