Unraveling The Barriers to Effective Waste Management in The Ethiopian Construction Industry: A Multi-Method Qualitative Approach

Abstract

There are various obstacles in Ethiopia's construction industry when managing construction and demolition waste. This paper aims to investigate the main barriers to managing construction and demolition waste in Ethiopia's construction industry. The diffusion of innovations theory and institutional theory served as the paper's theoretical foundations. A Delphi procedure was used after a systematic literature review as part of a multi-method qualitative strategy. Twenty-three documents were selected for additional review through a systematic literature review. A thematic analysis of the various barriers in the screened publications was conducted using ATLASti23. After that, a Delphi was held with 15 panelists with sufficient construction industry experience and knowledge. After every three rounds, Kendall's coefficient of concordance was calculated to assess the experts' agreement on the barriers. The absence of commitment and interest by project stakeholders, lack of integration among stakeholders, Inadequate waste disposal procedures, lack of government support and incentives, and insufficient planning on waste management were among the top ten major barriers explored. Addressing the highlighted barriers is vital to moving closer to a future with a more environmentally conscious construction industry.

Keywords

• Circular Economy
• Construction Industry
• Construction and Demolition Waste
• Delphi Technique
• Systematic literature review