Construction industry act to be in Parliament...

Construction Industry Act to be tabled in Parliament next month

edited by Saudi Ali 27.10.2009. The Construction Industry Act is set to be taken up in Parliament in November that is to become the successor to the ICTAD. The Construction Industry Act is a vital piece of legislation that will be able to regulate, develop and facilitate and provide training to those in the sector. Construction and Engineering Ministry Secretary Nissanka Wijeratne told the Daily Financial Times that the Act will establish three institutions namely the National Advisory Council on Construction, the Construction Industry Development Fund and the Construction Industry Development Authority. With the approval expected in November, the construction industry is expected to benefit from this new legislation once enacted. The establishment of a development fund will assist the industry while increased training and research and development is also likely to take place increasingly. Moreover, following a government decision on the cess fund to be established this will include both public and private sectoral involvement. In addition, developmental activities such as funding will also be the call of the day. Added to these, a research project on the construction sector will be carried out that would enable to establish pricing trends within the industry, provide for a platform for contractors’ issues to be taken up, construction planning is expected to be carried out while the developmental planning tools will also be initiated. The Act was finalized with the concurrence of all stakeholders over the last two years, however, this is yet to obtain approval from Parliament.