The Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors has reaffirmed the critical role of its members in promoting cost efficiency and accountability in construction, stressing that effective cost management remains key to curbing waste and preventing project failures across Nigeria’s building and infrastructure sector.
The institute also noted that cost and procurement management for building and infrastructure projects is the exclusive competence of quantity surveyors. The National President of NIQS, Aminu Bashir, said this on Thursday in Lagos during the Seminar/Investiture of Ololade Sokoya as the 9th Chairperson of the Women Association of Quantity Surveyors in Nigeria.
He warned that any professional attempting to venture into cost management is encroaching on unfamiliar territory.
“I want to first of all make it clear to you that cost management is an exclusive competency area for the quantity surveyor. Any professional who wants to delve into that is crossing into a lane that he doesn’t belong in. We appreciate our professionals, such as engineers and architects, and we respect what they do in terms of design and implementation.
He warned that any professional attempting to venture into cost management is encroaching on unfamiliar territory.
“I want to first of all make it clear to you that cost management is an exclusive competency area for the quantity surveyor. Any professional who wants to delve into that is crossing into a lane that he doesn’t belong in. We appreciate our professionals, such as engineers and architects, and we respect what they do in terms of design and implementation.
“But the reality of the matter is that cost and procurement management expertise of building and infrastructure projects lies with the quantity surveyor by virtue of our training, right from tertiary institutions to internships and professional practice,” Bashir said.
Bashir added that the association has taken it upon itself to intensify advocacy to public and private institutions so that cost management is entrenched in all projects. He said this approach is the only way Nigeria can ensure prudent spending, curb corruption, and achieve value for money.
The NIQS president also announced that the association has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to enable its involvement in property valuation.
“We are making efforts to reach all tiers of government. It has been three months since we came in, and the previous administration also did that. On the 1st of April, to be precise, we will be meeting with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission because we are involved in the tracking of all constituency projects across the country.
“We presently have an MOU with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission so that we will be involved in capital valuation of properties and giving them expert witness and other advice. We have written letters to various levels of government, ministers, even to the presidency,” he stated.
He admitted that building collapse could result from several factors and lamented that one of the association’s major challenges had been the low public awareness of its core competencies. “Most of the abandoned buildings you see are because they are not involving cost management experts,” he said.
Earlier, the new Chairperson of WAQSN, Ololade Sokoya, said the event aims to encourage women to take on greater responsibility in a male-dominated environment.
“You know the construction space is actually being served by men. So, we saw recently that women have been doing exploits. They have shown ability and capacity. So, what we are doing in our main agenda is to make sure that we push women to take up responsibility, to be on top of their game. There will be different trainings that we will be having,” Sokoya said.
Speaking on the rising cost of building materials, she attributed the development to the ongoing US, Israel-Iran war, noting that it is a global phenomenon.
“Well, this seems to be a global phenomenon at this time because, apparently, like everybody keeps saying, because of the war that is going on, and the waterways are being streamlined, getting materials is difficult. There are a lot of things. But I believe that it is a phase that will pass with time,” Sokoya said.
She advised that the country can mitigate the challenges through proper cost management. “The challenges can be mitigated through cost planning and cost management. Those are the things that we can use to mitigate this challenge. You have to plan. You must plan your costs ahead of the project,” Sokoya said.
In her valedictory speech, the immediate past Chairperson of WAQSN, Dr Bukola Aluko-Olokun, said her two-year tenure was marked by growth, shared challenges, and notable achievements.
“Together, we have navigated global shifts by taking WAQSN to the international space of the Africa Association of Quantity Surveyors. The tenure was not without its challenges. Navigating a male-dominated industry requires resilience, grit, and a thick skin. But as WAQSN members, we have proven that our expertise, our precision, and our unique leadership style are not just valuable, they are essential,” she said.
The Chairman of the occasion, Prof Olubola Babalola, said, “The charge I want to give us is that quantity surveyors have grown. What we do as quantity surveyors is wide. The time we spend at the site is more than what architects spend, but we don’t get as much as they do.
“We should be smarter. We should catch them young. The younger ones should have the knowledge about all these things. We should come together and work towards getting a faculty of quantity surveyors. Let us move with the trend.”
In his address, the keynote speaker, Obafemi Onashile, said the association has indeed grown across the entire African continent. “With the advent of artificial intelligence, very soon human beings will be competing with two things: human beings and computers. The advent of AI will significantly affect the construction industry. Operating in the construction market has become very volatile,”she stated.
SOURCE: IN HOUSE
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