The Pakistani Construction Industry has always been of economic and social significance to the
country. In contrast to the prospective share of Pakistani construction in the local and global
economic market, conversely, the development of the sector has not been at par with the market
demands. With the recent rapid economic growth of the country, Pakistan now offers a growing
market for the construction industry. The Government of Pakistan has responded to this
opportunity by planning extensive infrastructure expansion programs. All of these programs have
the potential to lead the local Industry to establish respect, status and international recognition
when the appropriate efforts are extended to achieve the same. Even with the opportunity for
growth the challenges will be extensive. This research presents the current state of performance of
Pakistani Construction Industry and provides directions for strategic improvement of the
construction industry on a sustainable basis. Major findings of the research include: a cultural and
behavioral shift in the mind-set of all participants in the construction process especially top
management is necessary if the construction industry is to improve its performance and
competitiveness; the “boom cycle” and corresponding shortage of labor trades has increased the
need for industry participants to adopt and apply construction project management philosophy,
tools and techniques to help them manage the industry performance and productivity in a
sustainable long-term mode. The major obstacles to improving the performance of Pakistani
construction industry were found to be lack of expertise/resources in construction project
management and its applied areas. A rigid attitude and behavior of executive management toward
quality, safety and risk management, plus more management and emphasis on employees’
commitment toward project performance, better education and training to drive the improvement
process, and tendency to cure the cause of the problem rather than the symptom. If coordination,
teamwork, productivity and industry performance in the long run is going to improve, then
extensive awareness and training programs to improve the clients’ understanding and approach
toward construction project management must be initiated without exception.
Keywords: Pakistan, Construction industry, Performance, Risk, Safety, Quality, Delay, Constructability, Low Bid Procurement, Best Value Procurement, Client Satisfaction Index