Abstract

For the past decade Botswana’s construction industry has been embroiled in a lot of controversies based on construction project constraints. These are characterized by construction project delays, budget overruns as well as scope creep and some of these construction projects have been deemed unsuccessful by different stakeholders. To find a mitigating factor for these problems, construction project constraints must be investigated beyond just the triple constraints to provide a solution for the Botswana construction industry. Therefore, the overall purpose of this study was to investigate how construction project constraints and stakeholders influence the outcome of a project. The study adopted a qualitative approach through face-to-face interviews with selected stakeholders such construction professionals, clients and other beneficiaries in the Gaborone and greater Gaborone areas. Thematic analysis was used to analyze data. The findings of the study established that the success of a construction project is subjective and is based on who is being asked, the construction professionals, the client and other beneficiaries had different perspectives on success of a project. The study revealed that initial constraints in a construction project tend to be carried along to the final stages of a construction project. However new few construction project constraints also emerge at the final stages of a construction project. The study found that stakeholders such as the client and other beneficiaries have a significant impact on construction projects due to their influence both positive and negative depending on the level of engagement.