Effectiveness of contractor development programme in KwaZulu-Natal

Abstract

The article investigates the level of satisfaction with the South African Department of Public Work’s Contractor Development Programme (CDP) in terms of its effectiveness. A mixed method research approach (combination of quantitative and qualitative approach) is employed for the collection of both statistical and in-depth information on the perceptions of participants on the CDP. Survey data collected from 364 participants and interview data from six focus-group participants in the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province of South Africa forms the data sets for the article. Data was analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23. Descriptive statistics is used to report the reliability of the various constructs, mean scores, standard deviations, and correlations. The findings show that participants not only deemed the programme unsatisfactory, but also reported an overall negative experience with the programme. Specific findings show that the CDP offers no training opportunities to registered members, lacks effective communication mediums, and benefited only those with political connections. The correlation results show that there is a strong relation between population and registering on the CDP, thus confirming that the open and easy access when registering on the CDP allows any interested person to automatically become a contractor creating the possibility of abuse of the programme. The study was limited to KZN contractors only and may, therefore, not be generalised to the entire national population of contractors. This article is relevant, as it gives insight into how satisfied contractors are with the CDP. It may help potential contractors to consider whether the CDP will be beneficial to them, before they decide to join the programme.