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The purpose of this study is to conduct a systematic review on encumbrances facing the implementation of GBP in selected African countries. Green building practices (GBP) implementation is germane and promotes the development of a green environment and buildings. Many studies have been conducted on the encumbrances faced with GBP implementation, especially in developing countries. But evidence of a comprehensive study that investigates and analyses these hindrances from different developing countries is missing. Therefore, a systematic review is conducted systematically reviewing the current literature on encumbrances facing the implementation of GBP in selected African countries. Also, the study proffers possible drivers for stakeholders to promote GBP in African countries.

A total of 38 published papers were identified from the Web of Science, Scopus database and supported with materials from Google Scholar related to Africa’s GBP. The continent was divided into five regions, and each region covered three countries.

Two themes emerged from the analysed review – encumbrances facing GBP implementation and possible drivers for stakeholders to promote GBP in African countries. A total of 18 encumbrances and 18 drivers were identified from the analysed literature and grouped into 6 sub-themes.

Current empirical articles were reviewed to suggest the drivers for stakeholders to promote GBP that emerged from this paper. Thus, to enrich the results from this paper, primary source data of regional studies of GBP in Africa’s context should be carried out via the mixed-methods design.

A total of 18 drivers were identified for stakeholders to promote GBP in Africa and form part of the paper’s implications. Also, the paper findings would serve as a treasured suggestion for the stakeholders (policymakers, construction practitioners, clients and academics) who are fascinated by the promotion of GBP across African nations.

This is possibly the foremost analysed systematic review study on GBP implementation in Africa. Therefore, it fills the theoretical gap and proffers possible drivers for stakeholders to promote GBP in the African context.

Research shows that employers are demanding generic skills from employees to complement disciplinary expertise. Evidence shows that majority of the higher institutions are struggling to meet this demand, especially in developing nations. Hence, these skills may be acquired while in the workplace through training and retraining. Studies concerning the Nigerian built environment professionals (BEP) generic skills in the workplace are scarce. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate Nigeria’s BEP generic skills in the workplace via an unexplored mechanism and proffer feasible policy solutions that can improve BEP generic skills development.

The views of BEP were collated via a phenomenology type of qualitative research design across two major Nigerian cities where construction activities are soaring. Virtual interviews were conducted for 20 selected BEP. Data saturation was accomplished and the emerged three themes were analysed through a thematic analysis.

Findings show that generic skills enhance value for money in construction project delivery. But many of these professionals do not possess these skills in their daily operations. This has raised concerns about the present curriculum for preparing the built environment graduates in today’s profession. Findings categorised the hindrances into employers related-hindrances and employees related-hindrances in Nigeria’s BEP context.

This study is confined to the relevance and hindrances of the generic skills for Nigerian BEP, and proffer feasible policies to promote generic skills in the workplace via a qualitative approach. Future study is needed to investigate the role of the various professional Institutes within Nigeria’s built environment in promoting generic skills.

The paper advanced key stakeholders including BEP Institutes and regulatory bodies to redirect their continuing professional development towards developing professional values and identities as a trajectory to promote the growth of BEP generic skills in the workplace.

The proposed framework can be used to promote the implementation of generic skills for BEP across all levels. This would assist and stir up policymakers and other stakeholders in connection with the implementation of generic skills within the BEP.

In the past, the construction sector faced a low technological development level. Recently, studies have shown that the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) technologies play a significant role in construction project performance. But how prepared are the developing countries’ construction consultants, a focus in Nigeria, in embracing the 4IR technologies in construction administration is yet to receive in-depth research. Thus, this paper aims to examine how Nigerian construction consultants are prepared to embrace 4IR technologies in pre- and post-construction activities.

To evaluate the perceptions of construction consultants, the study conducted a virtual interview. The participants were asked the following key questions: What technologies that are currently linked with the 4IR and used by construction consultants in the industry? What factors may hinder the strategic application of 4IR by the construction consultants? What initiatives may be necessary to overcome the perceived encumbrances faced by the construction consultants? Twelve semi-structured interviews from selected construction consultants were engaged and collated data analysed via a thematic approach.

The paper identifies digital software used by construction consultants that have a link with 4IR technologies. From the ten emerged hindrances, cost of adopting the technologies, unwillingness on the part of stakeholders to adopt, inadequate standards and reference architectures and absence of awareness were ranked high as the factors hindering construction consultants from using 4IR technologies. Initiatives that can overcome the perceived encumbrances are examined in detail.

This study is restricted to construction consultants in Nigeria, and only 12 participants were engaged, but these do not affect the strength of the results. Thus, this study recommends a mixed-methods approach for future research with broader coverage.

The Government should intervene via subsidy regime and overhaul the academic curriculum to reflect the current trend of practices regarding technologies. Also, there should be vigorous enlightenment and pragmatic sensitisation of construction stakeholders and knowledge training of practitioners, among others, were suggested. As part of this paper’s implications, a perception-based model was developed to promote 4IR technologies for construction consultants in the Nigerian construction sector. This model encourages the construction consultants to embrace 4IR technologies for better service delivery, project performance and client satisfaction.

This paper appraised 4IR technologies’ role in the construction sector, focusing on the preparedness of the construction consultants in Nigeria. Also, the study identified the issues and proffer initiatives to improve 4IR usage by construction consultants.

Over the past years, high waste and inefficiencies in the construction industry may have contributed to many projects failing to meet clients’ expectations. Among the new project delivery mechanisms to tackle this problem is integrated project delivery (IPD). IPD has been proved as a mechanism that increases stakeholders’ collaboration at the early stage and delivers the highest value-for-money projects. In Nigeria, research regarding practitioners in the application of IPD in construction delivery is scarce. Thus, this study aims to investigate the level of awareness, issues hindering the implementation of IPD and proffer solutions to promote the use of IPD in project delivery.

Qualitative research was adopted. Twenty virtual interviews via Zoom and Whatsapp Videos were used to collect data from the selected participants and analysed via a thematic method. This is because of the unexplored dimension of the issues.

Results show that practitioners are aware of IPD but lax in the application. The emerged issues hindering the adoption and implementation of IPD were grouped into technological, legal, financial and cultural in Nigeria’s context.

This study is restricted to the relevance and hindrances facing the usage of IPD in the Nigerian built environment. The study proffers solutions to promote the use of IPD in the built environment via a qualitative approach.

This paper will contribute towards stirring Nigeria’s stakeholders to create an enabling environment within the industry via IPD friendly policies and promote the use of IPD on construction projects.

This paper is one of the few papers that attempted to uncover issues that hinder the use of IPD on construction projects in Nigeria via a qualitative approach.

In less than a decade to Sustainable Development Goals, the urban solid waste (USW) emanating from households, especially in developing countries, calls for concern. Several policies have been suggested and some implemented, but the challenges facing USW management remain, especially in developing nations. Past studies demonstrated that the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) technologies can be used to improve urban public services. The role of 4IR in mitigating the challenges of USW is yet to receive in-depth research in Nigeria. Thus, the study investigated 4IR role regarding mitigating the challenges facing USW.

Seven cities across Nigeria, including the Federal Capital Territory, were used as the study area to achieve the research objectives via a qualitative research design. Thirty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted from selected regulators, households, legislators, ICT experts, NGOs and waste managers. A thematic approach was adopted to analyse the collated data.

Findings group the USW challenges into five categories. The 4IR technologies can be used to manage USW; thus, they create an opportunity to integrate and promote sustainable clean cities.

This study is confined to the 4IR role concerning mitigating the encumbrances facing USW in Nigeria and proffered feasible policies to enhance a sustainable healthy environment.

Proffered policy solutions will stir policymakers and construction practitioners to think outside the box and offer and better understand how 4IR technologies can be utilised to mitigate those challenges. The outcome will create sustainable clean cities as part of the implication contribution to the body of knowledge.

Evidence from the reviewed literature shows a paucity of literature focussed on 4IR roles in mitigating the encumbrances facing USW in Nigeria. Therefore, this study contributes to the existing research work on 4IR concerning its role in enhancing USW in Nigeria and, by extension, to other developing countries.

The Nigerian Government’s initiatives to provide housing loans to low-income pensioners (LIPs) have been futile. This paper aims to examine the root cause of housing loan inaccessibility for the Nigerian LIPs and proffer some possible policy options. This is because inaccessibility to housing finance is one of the impediments facing the LIPs homeownership.

The phenomenology type of qualitative research was employed to collate data. The study supports MAXQDA 2020 with thematic analysis to analyse the data and achieve saturation with 30 knowledgeable participants.

Findings show that housing loan rejection is extremely high among LIPs. Some of the impediments facing the LIPs in accessing housing loans include delayed gratuity, insufficient income for housing loan repayments, failed mortgage finance, incapacitated National Housing Fund (NHF), a corrupt system and lack of collateral.

The paper is limited to the housing loan inaccessibility for the Nigerian LIPs and data collected via semi-structured face-to-face interviews in Lagos, Nigeria. Other developing cities may adopt the suggestions that will emerge from this paper with similar housing loan inaccessibility issues.

This study would stir policymakers and mortgage institutions to consider the suggestions from this paper. Examples are the review of the Pension Reform Act 2014 to allow for 50% part withdrawal from the Retirement Savings Account, 10% upward review contribution to NHF and create special Federal Integrated Staff Housing Programme (FISH-P) for LIPs. These form part of the practical implications and will be helpful to policymakers.

Research regarding LIPs’ housing loan accessibility is limited, making this paper one of the pioneering attempts to investigate the root cause of housing loan inaccessibility for the Nigerian LIPs, and proffers some possible policy options.