ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY

SCHOOL OF COMMERCE

ASSESSMENT ON THE CHALLENGES OF PROJECT

EXECUTION IN INVESTMENT PROJECTS OF
ETHIOPIAN LEATHER PRODUCTS INDUSTRY
DEVELOPMENT

A PROJECT PAPER SUBMITED TO ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY,

SCHOOL OF COMMERCE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
REQUIREMENTS FOR AWARD OF MA IN PROJECT MANAGEMENT

By: MELKAMU MESERET (ID No: GSE8272/09)

Advisor: SOLOMON MARKOS (PhD)

June, 2019

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

 DECLARATION

I, the undersigned, hereby declare that the work contained in this project paper is my own
original work and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted at any
university for a degree.

Signature: ______________________________ Date: __________________

 CERTIFICATION

This is to certify that the project work entitled ―ASSESSMENT ON THE

CHALLENGES OF PROJECT EXECUTION IN INVESTMENT PROJECTS OF
ETHIOPIAN LEATHER PRODUCTS INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT‖ undertaken by
Melkamu Meseret in Partial fulfillment of the award of Master‗s degree in Project
Management at Addis Ababa University school of Commerce, is an original work and not
submitted earlier for any degree either at this University or any other University.

Therefore, I recommend that the student has fulfilled the requirements and hence hereby
can submit the project work (paper) to the department.

_________________________ ____________________ ______________________

Name of advisor Signature Date
 Addis Ababa University

School of Graduate Studies

This is to certify that the project work prepared by Melkamu Meseret, entitled:
Assessment on the Challenges of Project Execution in Investment Projects of Ethiopian
Leather Products Industry Development submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of Degree of Master of Arts in Project Management complies
with the regulations of the University and meets the accepted standards with respect to
originality and quality.

Signed by the Examining Committee:

Examiner: _____________________ Signature: _____________ Date: _______

(Internal)
Examiner: _____________________ Signature: _____________ Date: _______
(External)
Advisor: _____________________ Signature: _____________ Date: _______

____________________________________________________________________

Chair of Department or Graduate Program Coordinator

Table of Contents

Abstract .............................................................................................................................. vi
Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................... vii
Lists of Figures ................................................................................................................... v
Lists of Tables .................................................................................................................... vi
Lists of Abbreviations ....................................................................................................... vii
CHAPTER ONE ................................................................................................................. 1
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1
1.1 Background of the Study ......................................................................................... 1
1.2 Statements of the problem ....................................................................................... 2
1.3 Research Questions .................................................................................................. 4
1.4 Objectives ................................................................................................................ 5
1.4.1 General objective.................................................................................................. 5
1.4.2 Specific objectives................................................................................................ 5
1.5 Significance of the study.......................................................................................... 5
1.6 Scope of the study .................................................................................................... 6
1.7 Definition of Terms.................................................................................................. 6
1.8 Limitations of the Study........................................................................................... 7
1.9 Organization of the Study ........................................................................................ 7
CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................ 9
LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................... 9
2.1 Theoretical Review .............................................................................................. 9
2.1.1 Introduction to Project Management ................................................................ 9
2.1.2 Concepts of Project Execution ......................................................................... 9
2.1.2.1 Project Control ................................................................................................ 11
2.1.3 Project Success and Failure ............................................................................ 12
2.1.3.1 Project Success ............................................................................................... 12
2.1.3.2 Factors Affecting Project Success .................................................................. 13
2.1.3.3 Projects Failure ............................................................................................... 15
2.1.4 Challenges in Project Management ................................................................ 16

iii
 2.2 Empirical Review ............................................................................................... 18
2.2.1 Challenges of Project Implementation in Developing Countries ................... 18
2.2.2 Challenges of manufacturing industry investment projects ........................... 22
2.3 Literature Gaps ................................................................................................... 24
CHAPTER THREE .......................................................................................................... 25
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY...................................................................................... 25
3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 25
3.2 Research Approach and Design ......................................................................... 25
3.2.1 Research Approach ......................................................................................... 25
3.2.2 Research Design ............................................................................................. 25
3.3 Target Population ............................................................................................... 26
3.4 Data Sources ....................................................................................................... 26
3.5 Data Collection Methods .................................................................................... 27
3.6 Validity and Reliability ...................................................................................... 27
3.7 Data Analysis Methods ...................................................................................... 28
3.8 Ethical Considerations........................................................................................ 28
CHAPTER FOUR ............................................................................................................. 29
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ....................................................................................... 29
4.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 29
4.2 General Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents ................................ 29
4.2.1 Sex of Respondents ........................................................................................ 29
4.2.2 Age of Respondents ........................................................................................ 30
4.2.3 Educational Level of Respondents ................................................................. 31
4.2.4 The Role of Respondents in the Project ......................................................... 31
4.3 General Information about the Project ............................................................... 32
4.3.1 Forms of Business .......................................................................................... 32
4.3.2 Ownership of Investment Projects .................................................................. 33
4.3.3 Type of Investment Project............................................................................. 33
4.3.4 Product Category of Investment ..................................................................... 34
4.3.5 Time of Implementations Started ................................................................... 35
4.3.6 Current Status of the Investment Projects ...................................................... 35

iv
 4.4 Internal Challenges of Project Execution ........................................................... 36
4.4.1 Availability of Clear Project Plan ................................................................... 38
4.4.2 People Readiness/project staffing/.................................................................. 40
4.4.2.1 Internal Financial Resources .......................................................................... 41
4.4.3 Physical Resources ......................................................................................... 43
4.4.4 Practical Execution Capability ....................................................................... 45
4.4.5 Stakeholder (Client) Supports ........................................................................ 47
4.5 Prioritizing the Internal Challenges.................................................................... 49
4.6 External Challenges of Project Execution .......................................................... 52
4.6.1 Government Regulations and system Issues .................................................. 52
4.6.2 Infrastructure Issues ........................................................................................ 54
4.6.3 Loan Issues ..................................................................................................... 55
4.6.4 Government Support....................................................................................... 57
4.6.5 Supply Issues .................................................................................................. 59
4.6.6 Issues Related to Contractors ......................................................................... 60
4.7 Prioritizing External Challenges ........................................................................ 61
CHAPTER FIVE .............................................................................................................. 64
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................................... 64
5.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................ 64
5.2 Summary ............................................................................................................ 64
5.3 Conclusion.......................................................................................................... 67
5.4 Recommendations .............................................................................................. 68
References ......................................................................................................................... 70
Annex ................................................................................................................................ 73

v
Abstract

In Ethiopia, the government has planned to attract many investment projects in

manufacturing industry sector to meet the growth plans. Currently, there are 17 new and
expansion leather products manufacturing investment projects which are under different
phases of investments. Though these projects are initiated to meet the growth and
transformation plans portioned for the sector, the lagged performances of these
investment projects are contributing to inefficient growth plan of the sector. This study
aimed to assess the internal and external challenges during project execution that have
contributed to the lagged performances of investment projects. The research design used
for this study was descriptive study to focus on the existing internal and external
situations that have been negatively affecting the investment projects of leather products
industry. A well-structured questionnaire was used to collect data, so that 52
questionnaires were distributed for the census survey of study population of 7 selected
projects and 47 surveys were returned from respondents which accounts to 90% response
rate. The data have been analyzed using descriptive statistics on SPSS in ways that
enable to answer the research questions and achieve the research objectives. Both the
internal and external challenges of project execution in Ethiopian leather products
manufacturing industry development found to be moderate challenges. Based on the
assessment results, the first top three internal challenges of project execution in the
leather products manufacturing investment projects are: internal financial resources;
practical project execution capability; and people readiness (project staffing). The first
top three external challenges of project execution in the leather products manufacturing
investment projects are: supply issues; loan issues; and government support issues. By
making a comparison between the results of internal and external challenges based on
the overall mean and relative importance indexes (RII) that is 3.13 and 0.626
respectively for internal challenges; and 2.71 and 0.542 respectively for external
challenges. Therefore, the success of project execution in Ethiopian leather products
manufacturing industry development projects have been challenged by external
challenges than internal challenges within the project undertaking companies.

Keywords: Challenges, Investment, Leather Products Manufacturing, Project Execution

vi
Acknowledgements

My Special and most high praises and love go to the Lord God for His incomparable and
invaluable love, provision, helps and protection in every aspect of my life.

I am so grateful to my advisor Solomon Markos (PhD) for his academic guidance, timely
and deep comments, and patience on this research paper.

I would like to extend my thanks to Mr. Mengistu Abebe, Mr. Terefe Alemu, and Mr.
Dereje Tolasa for their kind cooperation in distributing and collecting questionnaires as
well as their supports during the courses of my study. I would also like to thank Mr.
Fitsum Ambachew, a project follow up team leader at LIDI, for his cooperation in
providing me necessary supports for data collection.

My honor and love goes to my parents, my sister Derartu Meseret and my friend
Eyerusalem Fekadu for whom I have no fair words to describe my true feelings and have
great share in my achievement.

vii
Lists of Figures

Figure 2.1: Categories of Success Matrix ......................................................................... 14

Figure 2.2: Project management challenges ..................................................................... 17
Figure 4.1: Sex of Respondents ........................................................................................ 30
Figure 4.2: Ages of Respondents ...................................................................................... 30
Figure 4.3: Educational Levels of Respondents ............................................................... 31
Figure 4.4: Role of Respondents in the Project ................................................................ 32

v
Lists of Tables

Table 4.1: Form of business .............................................................................................. 32

Table 4.2: Ownership of investment ................................................................................. 33
Table 4.3: Types of Investment Project ............................................................................ 34
Table 4.4: Product category of investment ....................................................................... 34
Table 4.5: Time of Implementation Started ...................................................................... 35
Table 4.6: Current status of the project ............................................................................. 36
Table 4.7: Categories of Likert scale description ............................................................. 37
Table 4.8: Availability of Clear Project Plan .................................................................... 38
Table 4.9: Comparison for Availability of Clear Project Plan.......................................... 39
Table 4.10: People Readiness/project staffing/ ................................................................. 40
Table 4.11: Comparison for People Readiness/project staffing/ ...................................... 41
Table 4.12: Analysis Result for Internal Financial Resources .......................................... 42
Table 4.13: Comparison for Internal Financial Resources ............................................... 43
Table 4.14: Analysis Results for Physical Resources ....................................................... 44
Table 4.15: Comparison for Physical Resources .............................................................. 44
Table 4.16: Analysis Result for Practical Execution Capability....................................... 45
Table 4.17: Comparison for Practical Execution Capability ............................................ 46
Table 4.18: Analysis Result for Stakeholder (Client) Supports ........................................ 47
Table 4.19: Comparison for Stakeholder (Client) Supports ............................................. 48
Table 4.20: Result for Prioritizing Internal Challenges .................................................... 50
Table 4.21: Result of Prioritizing Internal Challenges Variables with mean value score
less than 3.13..................................................................................................................... 51
Table 4.22: Analysis Result for Government Regulations and system Issues .................. 53
Table 4.23: Comparison for Government Regulations and system Issues ....................... 54
Table 4.24: Analysis Result for Infrastructure Issues ....................................................... 54
Table 4.25: Comparison for Infrastructure Issues............................................................. 55
Table 4.26: Analysis Results for Loan Issues ................................................................... 56
Table 4.27: Comparison for Loan Issues .......................................................................... 57
Table 4.28: Analysis Result for Government Support ...................................................... 57
Table 4.29: Comparison for Government Support ........................................................... 58
Table 4.30: Analysis Result for Supply Issues ................................................................. 59
Table 4.31: Comparison for Supply Issues ....................................................................... 59
Table 4.32: Analysis Results for Issues Related to Contractors ....................................... 60
Table 4.33: Comparison for Issues Related to Contractors .............................................. 61
Table 4.34: Results for Prioritizing External Challenges ................................................. 62
Table 4.35: Result for Prioritizing External Challenges Variables with mean value score
less than 2.71..................................................................................................................... 63

vi
Lists of Abbreviations

DBE: Development Bank of Ethiopia

EIC: Ethiopian Investment Commission

FDI: Foreign Direct Investment

Gov‘t: Government

GTP: Growth and Transformation Plan

LIDI: Leather Industry Development Institute

LPMID: Leather Products Manufacturing Industry Development

NPC: National Planning Commission

PM: Project Management

SPSS: Statistical Package for the Social Sciences

RII: Relative Importance Indexes

ROI: Return on Investment

vii
 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

The development of any country depends on the investments of resources in different

sectors of public and private enterprises. The primary objectives of investment projects
are the successful completion and operation of projects to overcome the problems these
investments are intended to solve and generate profits in return. Manufacturing industry
development investment projects are among different sector projects that are given high
attention by developing countries to exploit their resources and become competitive in
the world market. There is weak industrial competitiveness in Africa and relatively poor
experience with industrial zones to date and factors that contribute to weak industrial
competitiveness include lack of policy stability, poor infrastructure, and high indirect
costs related to a poor business environment. Many of the problems that plague the wider
investment environment in Africa have hindered development of most special economic
zone projects on the continent and these problems include infrastructure shortfalls,
administrative weaknesses, ineffective management, policy uncertainty, and poor
strategic and operational planning (Brautigam et.al., 2010).

In Ethiopia, the government has planned to attract many investment projects in

manufacturing industry sector to meet the growth plans of GTP-I and II, that was closed
and that is in progress respectively, in order to sustain the economic development of the
country. Among the industry developments in manufacturing industries textile, leather,
and agro-processing manufacturing industries have been given the priority by the
government of Ethiopia due to the fact that these industries are labor intensive that can
create vast job opportunities, raw material are abundant, ease of technology transfer,
high market demand etc. FDI investors migrate to Ethiopia to enjoy these benefits and
other incentive schemes designed by the government. The key motive for investment in
the zone is labor exploitation, relatively cheap land and input materials. Against the
background of increasing labor costs in China and over-supply in the domestic
manufacturing sector some Chinese producers find Ethiopia attractive. For example,

1
footwear manufacturer Huajian Group, uses the zone to make shoes for the American and
European markets (Giannecchini et.al., 2018).

According to the GTP document, the leather and leather products industry is one of the
priority industries that are expected to contribute considerably to export diversification
and foreign exchange earnings through greater value addition and productivity
improvement (FDRE, 2010). Ethiopia‘s footwear industry and its leather sector in general
enjoy significant international comparative advantages owing to its abundant and
available raw materials, highly disciplined workforce and cheap prices (Mulat, 2015).
Investment projects in Leather products manufacturing industry sector are the means to
pull the development of the leather industry in general to exploit these comparative
advantages. There is a tendency, at present, for policies and incentive structures to focus
on leather products manufacturing in the hope that this will improve export performance
(Mekonnen and Gezahegn, 2008). The leather products industry which have been in
operation and also which are under project execution of various stages are privately
owned enterprises. Ethiopian high-performing enterprises are not state-owned enterprises
but private enterprises and are building or planning to build new large factories to start
mass production of high-quality leather shoes for foreign markets (Sonobe et.al., 2009).

1.2 Statements of the problem

Investment projects are the backbones of economic growth for any nation. Investments in
Ethiopia are trapped with extensive challenges that pullback the effectiveness and
sustainability of industrialization. Nearly all investment projects in Ethiopia whether
public or private exhibit lagged performances. Lagged investment has significant
negative effect on private investment; the significant and negative effect of lagged private
investment might be because of frequent changes in investment policies and
requirements, inefficient bureaucracies, poor institutional arrangement and rampant
corruption, and the associated high transaction costs of doing business among others
(Hailu, 2013). In the Ethiopian context, given Ethiopia‘s infant private sector,
underdeveloped transport facilities and unpredictable infrastructure and utilities, the
industrial zones face major obstacles (Giannecchini et.al., 2018). FDI for example
Chinese developers expect host governments to actively support industry zone

2
development; instead, they are finding in some projects (such as in Ethiopia) that
governments allocate land to developers and do little else so that developers have also
been frustrated by the lack of progress or poor quality of infrastructure provided by some
local governments outside the zones (Brautigam et.al., 2010).

According to Fitsum et.al. (2018), currently, there are 17 investment projects in leather
products industry development in Ethiopia that are owned by both FDI and domestic
investors in the sector. Investment projects in leather products industry development are
manufacturing industries that are engaged in leather Footwear, Leather Garment and
Goods, and Leather Glove manufacturing and they are located in Addis Ababa city and
Around, Adama, Modjo, Bahirdar, and Debre Birhan cities. The projects under
investments are new investments as well as expansion investment projects.

Currently the investment projects in leather products industry development are found at
three different project stages as: (1) investment projects that commenced production
operation, (2) investment projects under execution, and (3) investment projects that are
licensed but not provided the investment land. These projects have experienced schedule
slippages and cost overruns due to complex and interlinked challenges that have been
influencing the performance of investment projects. All the leather products industry
development investment projects have been unsuccessful to start the operations on
schedule and to generate the foreign currency for the country according to their initial
project proposals. Even though some investment projects from FDI and domestic
investors commenced operation in the GTP-I and contributing to export growth still there
are many investment projects that could not start the operation yet as per their project
plan (Fitsum et.al. 2018).

Also, there are many stakeholders in these investment projects with multifaceted
problems and bureaucratic systems that holdback the performance of the projects. The
sum of every problem that emanates from each stakeholder is complicating the
progression of the projects and affecting the overall project performances. Beyond the
performance delays, these situations are leading to loss of trusts among the stakeholders
and are negatively affecting the benefit of the investors that was initially planned to
generate revenues and similarly the benefit of the country as a result.

3
On the other ways, though many researches have been done in challenges of PM in
different sector projects including Ethiopia they have been conducted with high attention
to construction industry sectors. Very few researches were conducted in the area of
manufacturing industry investment projects. The conducted researches were mainly focus
on investment practices in general in Ethiopia, their challenges, and opportunities in
several manufacturing industries. The researches were also conducted in leather and
leather products industry development specific sector in Ethiopia with more emphasis to
challenges and opportunities in industry along the leather value chain. In investment
projects of leather products manufacturing industry related to the project management
practices it is difficult to get published studies. Therefore, this study fills the literature
gap by focusing on the challenges that face the investment projects during the project
execution phase in leather products industry development.

The problems stated above can be considered as the internal environment problems that
can be studied in connection to the capacity of enterprises and external environment
problems that can be outwardly studied which have challenged the effectiveness project
execution. Therefore, this study aims to assess these challenges that are negatively
influencing the project execution as a result limiting the performance of investment
projects in Ethiopian leather products industry development.

1.3 Research Questions

The research questions the researcher wanted to answer at the end of the study are the
following:

1. What are the major internal challenges affecting the performances of investment
projects in leather products industry development sector?
2. What are the major external challenges affecting the performances of investment
projects in leather products industry development sector?
3. How these problems can be prioritized in order to solve the problems to increase
the overall project performances?

4
 1.4 Objectives

1.4.1 General objective

The general objective of this study is to assess the main challenges of project execution in
investment projects of Ethiopian leather products industry development that have been
affecting the overall performances of investment projects in this particular sector.

1.4.2 Specific objectives

The specific objectives of this study are:

 To identify major internal challenges in the project execution of new and

expansion investment projects in the leather products industry development;
 To identify major external challenges in the project execution of new and
expansion investment projects in the leather products industry development;
 To prioritize the challenges according to the measure grand mean of the internal
and external challenges in order to address the challenges and to enhance the
performance of the investment projects.

1.5 Significance of the study

This study will reveal the challenges that have been hindering the performance of new
and expansion investment projects during project execution in the leather products
specific sector in Ethiopia. It assesses the major internal and external challenges and
proposes possible solutions that will be used as an input for different stakeholders in the
investment of industry development. Hence, the output of this study will directly or
indirectly be used by Leather Industry Development Institute (LIDI) who has the mandate
of facilitating the development the leather sector as a whole. It will also help the other
development promoting government organizations like Ethiopian Investment
Commissions and Development Bank of Ethiopia while reviewing their systems and
policies. It will also increase the awareness of challenges to the investors and provide
them the appropriate recommendations to accelerate their project performances to gain
the maximum possible benefits from the project‘s completion. On the other hand, apart

5
from the practicality as this study has the academic intention it will add knowledge to the
literature in the area of project execution of investment projects in manufacturing
industry. Finally, it will help the business consulting firms and individuals in investment
promotion to enhance their knowledge and provide relevant consultancy services for their
clients.

1.6 Scope of the study

Among the different areas of project management studies this study focuses on the
project execution. The study will mainly concentrate on major internal and external
challenges that have been hindering the overall performance of the projects during the
project execution of new and expansion investment projects of leather products industry
development. The challenges going to be studied are confined to internal project
management capacity of the companies during project execution and external forces that
have constrained the progress of the projects execution. The study focuses on the
investment projects of both new and expansion projects that have commenced in GTP I
and II and are under different investment stages including recently completed projects.
Also, the researcher will limit the study on such investment projects in the leather
products industry like leather footwear, leather goods, leather garment, and leather glove
manufacturing investment projects. In this study, the researcher also emphasizes only on
FDI and domestically owned projects that develop their own manufacturing units inside
or around Addis Ababa.

1.7 Definition of Terms

To make the concept of the study clearer to the readers the researcher has defined the
following terms used throughout the study with respect to their conceptual and
operational definitions.

 Challenges: the undesirable situation of being faced with project execution that
needs great mental or physical effort in order to be done successfully and
therefore tests a project‘s performance.

6
  Project execution: the project phase in which the plans are carried out and the
majority of the actual work of the project is achieved (Williams, 2008).
 Internal challenges: the challenges related to project execution/implementation
that is bounded within the capacity of the project implementing company.
 External challenges: the challenges related to project execution/implementation
that is outside the capacity of the project implementing company.
 Investment projects: a detailed proposal of an expenditure of liquid resources,
with the objective of taking action that will lead to future profits.
 Leather products industry: manufacturing industries that are engaged in the
manufacturing of leather Footwear, Leather Garment and Goods, and Leather
Glove products.

1.8 Limitations of the Study

The study has the limitation of generalizability to whole investment projects in Ethiopian
leather products manufacturing investment projects as it failed to include all 17 current
projects where only 7 projects were included. Also, other external participants like form
banks and government institutions were not included that limits the data validity.

1.9 Organization of the Study

The research report has been organized in the following ways and comprises of the
following five chapters.

Chapter 1: Introduction: - this chapter deals with introductory part consisting of

background of the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the study, definition of
terms, significance of the study and scope of the study.

Chapter 2: Literature review: - this chapter discusses the introduction to project

management, concepts of project execution, project control, project success and failure,
factors affecting project success, challenges in project management, challenges of project
implementation in developing countries, and challenges of manufacturing industry
investment projects.

7
Chapter 3: Research Methodology: - this chapter explains the research methodology part
used to undertake the study consisting of the research approach and design, target population,
data sources, data collection method, validity and reliability, data analysis methods, and
ethical consideration.

Chapter 4: Results and Discussion: - this chapter presents the results of the study and
discusses them in details. Mainly, it answers the research questions and consists of: internal
challenges of project execution, external challenges of project execution, and prioritization of
internal and external challenges.

Chapter 5: Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations: - this chapter states the summary
of study results, conclusions and provides recommendations.

8
 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Theoretical Review

2.1.1 Introduction to Project Management

Project management is the application of knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to
project activities to meet the project requirements. Project management is accomplished
through the appropriate application and integration of five Process Groups i.e. Initiating,
Planning, Executing, Monitoring and Controlling, and Closing (PMI, 2013).

Project management consists of the knowledge, skills, methods, techniques, and tools
used to plan and manage project work. It establishes a sound basis for effective planning,
scheduling, resourcing, decision making, management, and plan revision. Project
management skills help complete projects on schedule, within budget, and in full
accordance with project specifications. At the same time, they help achieve the other
goals of the organization, such as productivity, quality, and cost-effectiveness. The
objective of project management is to ensure that projects meet agreed goals of time,
cost, and scope (Richman, 2011).

2.1.2 Concepts of Project Execution

The Executing Process Group consists of those processes performed to complete the
work defined in the project management plan to satisfy the project specifications. This
Process Group involves coordinating people and resources, managing stakeholder
expectations, as well as integrating and performing the activities of the project in
accordance with the project management plan (PMI, 2013).

There are two aspects to the process of project execution. One is to execute the work that
must be done to create the product of the project. This is properly called technical work,
and a project is conducted to produce a product. Executing also refers to implementing
the project plan. It is amazing to find that teams often spend time planning a project, then
abandon the plan as soon as they encounter some difficulty. Once they do this, they

9
cannot have control of the work, since without a plan there is no control. The key is to
either take corrective action to get back on track with the original plan or to revise the
plan to show where the project is at present and continue forward from that point. What
often gets lost in project execution is the absolute necessity to keep the plan current based
on the changes that have affected the project from day one (Heagney, 2012).

When preparations are made the execution phase can start. Activities examples during the
project execution include acquire resources, project staffing, follow up project staffs and
manage changes, maintain continuous communication, and complete project evaluations.
Before project can be executed the project group must be staffed and other resources
committed. Projects which need to acquire resources, material, or equipment externally
must carry out a procurement process which is initiated by identifying the needs which
are best satisfied by the help of external resources. To ensure that projects stay on truck,
continuous review of the process is necessary, and appropriate adjustments are to be
made (Tonnquist, 2009).

The execution stage of a project is the transformation of a theoretical and planned

concept into physical and material structures. During this stage, we see the actual site
preparation, buildings, equipment, and machinery constructed (systems) and begin
functioning to deliver the project objectives (Lutchman, 2011). To implement a project, it
requires carrying out activities proposed in the application form with the aim to achieve
project objectives and deliver results and outputs. Its success depends on many internal
and external factors.

Philips et.al. (2012), in project execution, the project manager will allocate much effort
here to develop the project team. Time and effort must be applied to ensure that they
perform at a high level and that the project‘s mission is accomplished. Here are some of
the tools and knowledge areas project managers need to execute projects.

 Team Development: ‗‗No project ever failed because of a bad Gantt chart.‘‘
Projects succeed because of people. The challenge is to utilize resources from
many different organizational departments to accomplish any project. Developing

10
 this group of resources and turning them into a team requires leadership from the
project manager.
 Leadership Development: Developing the leadership skills of a project manager
incorporates many methodologies and concepts.
 Quality Assurance: Quality assurance is done throughout the project
development and the product should be evaluated to make sure that quality
standards are being achieved.
 Distributing Project Information: A project manager can spend up to 90
percent of their time communicating information on a project. They are gathering
data, generating reports, and providing data.
 Procurements: Identifying the requirements for the work to be done is critical to
determine what services are needed. There are many contract structures that a
project manager can use to improve the ROI of the project.

2.1.2.1 Project Control

The control and controlling is the ongoing process which enables the project to flow on a
predetermined course (Mishra, 2005). While the project teams are physically constructing
each deliverable, the project manager undertakes a series of management processes to
monitor and control the activities being undertaken (Westland, 2006).

Processes are established to identify and resolve issues, and manage changes that affect
project, cost, timing, and quality. A process to measure and record project metrics is also
established and implemented in the executing phase of the project (Bolles, 2002).

As described by Philips et.al. (2012), As the project is executed, monitoring and control
activities are continuously accomplished to ensure that the project is on track. Corrective
and preventive actions are implemented to ensure that the project stays on plan. Some of
the tools and knowledge used to monitor and control projects are:

 Change Control: Change control is advocated rather than change prevention on

projects. Change can run rampant on projects, resulting in a phenomenon known
as ‗‗scope creep.‘‘ Scope creep occurs when the project/product features change
and grow as the project develops.

11
  Earned Value Management: Earned value is a useful tool to assess project
budget and schedule performance. This will allow for a three-dimensional view of
work planned, percent of work completed, and the actual cost for work
completed. EV should be embraced as a performance management tool that will
assist the project team in assessing project status. It will help to develop budget
and duration estimating proficiency, allowing for better estimating and variance
control on future projects.
 Monitoring and Controlling Risks: Risks are monitored continuously
throughout the project, as they can change the impact and/or probability assessed.
Maintaining risk management plans is imperative to the success of the project. It
is important to recognize that risk management is not only performed at the
beginning of the project, but throughout the life of the project.

2.1.3 Project Success and Failure

2.1.3.1 Project Success

Since projects are temporary in nature, the success of the project should be measured in
terms of completing the project within the constraints of scope, time, cost, quality,
resources, and risk as approved between the project managers and senior management.
To ensure realization of benefits for the undertaken project, a test period (such as soft
launch in services) can be part of the total project time before handing it over to the
permanent operations. Project success should be referred to the last baselines approved
by the authorized stakeholders (PMI, 2013).

Historically, the definition of success on a project was viewed as accomplishing the work
within the triple constraints and obtaining customer acceptance. Today, the triple
constraints are still important, but they have taken a ―back seat‖ to the business and value
components of success. In today‘s definition, success is when the planned business value
is achieved within the imposed constraints and assumptions, and the customer receives
the desired value (Kerzner, 2011). Very few projects are ever completed without trade-
offs or scope changes on time, cost, and quality. Project success is often measured by the

12
―actions‖ of three groups: the project manager and team, the parent organization, and the
customer‘s organization (Kerzner, 2009).

The success of any project can be defined in terms of several things and this includes
timeliness, working within the budget and meeting stakeholder‘s expectations. Top
support management was of importance by being active stakeholders and the clarity of
goals throughout the project management and implementation. The top management
offers direction, motivation and support to the team implementing the project. The top
management also monitors the project throughout its implementation and communicates
progress of the project to the stakeholders. Therefore, top management is one of the
major factors that influence project success or its failure.

Lutchman (2011), concluded that: Success in project execution is dependent on the

leadership skills of the project leadership team and having the right people and processes
in place to support execution. Undoubtedly, the way we equip our personnel before they
are allowed to function in frontline leadership roles in any of the organizations will
ultimately determine commitment, motivation, and productivity of workers. The full
support of all stakeholders is required to ensure success during execution.

2.1.3.2 Factors Affecting Project Success

Ten key factors found critical to project implementation success that makes practical
sense in that it has important implications for project managers. These critical success
factors are: project mission; top management support; project schedule/plan; client
consultation; personnel recruitment, selection, and training; technical tasks; and client
acceptance (Pinto et.al., 1987).

The project success is determined by four cornerstones of success in four quadrants. Each
of the quadrants the can have its own unique set of critical success factors and likewise
their own unique metrics and key performance indicators (Kerzner, 2011).

13
 Figure 2.1: Categories of Success Matrix

Source: Kerzner (2011), page: 142.

Better and effective project management practices are essential for the success of
projects. Adopting project management best practices can produce the desired project
outcome; thereby strategically help the organization to achieve its organizational goals
and objectives. As a critical success factor, top management support is most essential for
the development of best practices (Menon, 2015).

Chan (2004), after carefully studying previous literatures, suggested that critical success
factors (CSFs) can be grouped under five following main categories.

 Project-Related Factors: The attributes used to measure this factor are type of
project, nature of project, complexity of project, and size of project.
 Procurement-Related Factors: procurement method (selection of the
organization for the design and construction of the project) and tendering method
(procedures adopted for the selection of the project team and in particular the
main contractor).
 Project Management Factors: A number of attributes will affect this factor,
including the communication system, control mechanism, feedback capabilities,

14
 planning effort, organization structure, safety and quality assurance program,
control of subcontractors‘ works, and finally the overall managerial actions.
 Project Participants-Related Factors: The attributes of this factor can be mainly
divided into two categories: one is related to client, another is the project team.
 External Factors: The attributes used to measure this factor are economic
environment, social environment, political environment, physical environment,
industrial relation environment, and level of technology advanced.

2.1.3.3 Projects Failure

According to Kerzner (2011), while we seem to have a reasonably good understanding of
project success, we have a poor understanding of project failure. The project manager and
the stakeholders can have different definitions of project failure. The project manager‘s
definition might just be not meeting the competing constraints criteria. Stakeholders, on
the other hand, might seem more interested in business value than the competing
constraints once the project actually begins. Stakeholders‘ perception of failure might be:

 The project has become too costly for the expected benefits or value.
 The project will be completed too late.
 The project will not achieve its targeted benefits or value.
 The project no longer satisfies the stakeholders‘ needs

A failure may mean that the project produced little or no results, delivering a negative
ROI. Sometimes they produced less-than-desired results, disappointing the client.
Perhaps the results were acceptable, but there was significant room for improvement. In
any case, the project did not live up to its expectations. Key reasons that projects fail are:
lack of business alignment, inappropriate project solution, project participants are not
engaged, lack of focus on business results, failure to prepare the environment for the
project, lack of accountability within the project, problems with data collection, failure to
isolate the effects of the project, and lack of involvement with key managers (Philips
et.al., 2012).

15
The failure of any project would entail several things which may include: lateness of the
project in terms of not adhering to the initial schedule, cost effectiveness dissatisfied
stakeholders and failure to be accountable (Mahianyu, 2016).

Wysoki, (2004), explained that Laurie constructed a fishbone diagram from the data of
the nine most recent project failures in an attempt to isolate the reason(s) for the failures.
Several statements confirm that conclusion of fishbone diagram of reasons for project
failures: Unclear process documentation; Process does not meet needs; Weak change
management, faulty acceptance criteria; Faulty acceptance criteria; Poor client
involvement.

2.1.4 Challenges in Project Management

Project management is not operations or service management. The challenges and best
practices for ongoing day-to-day operations are very different from those involved in
project management. Anyone can write a project plan or update an issue list. On the other
hand, writing a project plan that everyone will actually follow, or creating an issue list
management process that people will actually use, are separate challenges. Project
management isn‘t about going it alone and creating all the artifacts (the plans, schedules,
issue lists, status updates, and so on) by yourself. It‘s about running the project; those
artifacts should be no more—or less—than useful and effective by-products of a project
that‘s going well (Williams, 2008).

Projects have unique characteristics, unique deliverables, unique people, and unique
circumstances. This characteristic makes them hard to estimate and hard to manage. Even
if the project is similar to one you have done before, new events and circumstances will
occur. Each project typically holds its own challenges and opportunities. Managing
expectations is one of the biggest challenges facing project managers. It seems as if your
client always wants more than you can deliver—for less cost and effort than it really
takes. This mismatch of expectations is one of the primary reasons projects don‘t end
successfully (Mochal et.al., 2011).

During project execution stage of the project cycle, the project has the greatest potential
for falling off the rails since both schedule delays and cost overruns generally occur in

16
this stage. Both the project cost and the schedule can be influenced by variables within
and outside the control of the organization. Variables that fall within the organization‘s
control include the approach to construction, labor productivity, site policies, safety
culture, working conditions and wage rates, personnel turnover, level of training, and
working hours, all of which can have a significant impact on the project schedule and
budgets. Cost overruns can be further influenced by the organization‘s procurement
policies, underestimation during the budgeting process, the absence of control and
appropriate measures to ensure adequate control, and accounting procedures and
practices. Some variables external to an organization‘s control include environmental and
seasonal conditions. Sometimes, governmental intervention, regulations, and approvals
can hinder progress and may be considered external to control. For smaller organizations
for which the volume of business generated is insufficient to influence a supplier‘s
behavior or when long delivery times exist in the supply chain management process,
these factors may also be considered external to the control of the organization
(Lutchman, 2011).

There are four major problems faced by a project manager; undefined goals, change in
scopes, improper risk management and impossible deadlines (Patil, 2016).

Figure 2.2: Project management challenges

Impossible
Deadline

Project
Improper Risk Undefined
Mangement Management Goals
Challenges

Change in Scopes

Source: Patil (2016), page: 6020.

17
According to Menon (2015), Lack of senior leadership support, ineffective project
management office, people factors, and lack of formal PM training are some of the
significant challenges organizations face, while implementing project management best
practices.

2.2 Empirical Review

2.2.1 Challenges of Project Implementation in Developing Countries

According to Rondinelli (1976), even the most efficient multinational corporations
undertaking new ventures in developing countries find unanticipated crises arise
continuously to obstruct the smooth execution of major projects. The following problems
are those that occur most frequently in developing countries in challenging project
implementation.

 Ineffective project planning and preparation: Some of the challenges are – Inability to
commit available resources to feasible projects; inadequate analysis of the absorptive
capacity of developing countries to finance, execute and operate specific types of
projects in each sector; insufficient preparatory analysis, sectoral assessment,
feasibility studies and technical appraisal to provide required information for
subsequent design
 Faulty appraisal and selection processes: Some of the challenges are – Objectives
and expected outputs of projects not clearly defined; Overemphasis on financial
targets in project appraisal and selection; Overemphasis on economic and technical
criteria in project appraisal and selection; Long lag periods in the processing and
approval of projects.
 Defective project design: Some of the challenges are – Underestimation of resource
needs leading to heavy additional unplanned borrowing; Inadequate or inappropriate
specifications, poor siting, use of defective or improper materials causing inferior
construction of capital facilities; Insufficiently detailed designs creating the need for
frequent design changes; Lack of interaction between project planners and ultimate
users, clients and beneficiaries during design; Failure to account adequately in

18
 financial plans for inflation, price increases, and rises in salary levels affecting overall
cost of the project.
 Problems in start-up and activation: Some of the challenges are – lack of cooperation
in allocating and disbursing resources required for project activation; Difficulty in
obtaining local resources during construction of the project leading to delay and cost-
overruns; Insufficient analysis and comparison of alternative methods available for
attaining project objectives during start-up; Inadequate organizational planning
leading to creation of inappropriate or ineffective project implementation unit.
 Inadequate project execution, operation and supervision: Some of the challenges are –
Cost over-runs due to delays in project construction, completion and implementation;
Failure to maintain adequate information flows to indicate achievement of detailed
performance targets; Insufficient capacity or incompetence of local contractors; Lack
of adequately trained and competent project managers; Inadequate resource and work
scheduling systems; Inadequate equipment specifications; Delays in delivery and
inability to procure required resources, materials and supplies; High turnover in
personnel, poor personnel training, inadequate salary structures; Conflict among
project staff or between project administrators and professional staff; Inability to
attract foreign consultants and contractors to supplement local consultant and
contractor capability
 Inadequate or ineffective external coordination of project activities: Some of the
challenges are – Insufficient supporting facilities, infrastructure and services;
insufficient coordination among organizations operating projects; Political
interference in construction or internal operation of project; insufficient use of foreign
technology; excessive investment in local technology as opposed to technology
transfer and adaptation.
 Deficiencies in diffusion and evaluation of project results and follow-up action: Some
of the challenges are – Inappropriate utilization of complete projects; Faulty
supervision and control; Poor internal reporting and monitoring procedures;
Inadequate monitoring and control for project implementation; Long delays in
submitting project completion reports; ineffective project post-evaluation methods
and procedures

19
As per the Olima (1999), the problems of project implementation, the analysis reveals
that delays in land acquisition among other factors had a serious impact on the overall
performance of development project. The impact of delays in acquisition resulted into
cost overruns due to price variations and time overruns. Problems in project
implementation were: land acquisition effort encountered many difficulties, projects
encountered los because of bureaucracy, resettlement issues for land acquisition,
resistance from land owners affected the project execution performance, finance for
paying compensation affected the projects, technical variations and under measurements,
macro-economic instability, funding of project was major challenge.

Doloi (2012), concluded construction projects in India are experiencing widespread delay
and the delays cane can be attributed to project execution factors in construction projects.
The researchers used selected set of 45 attributes by first identifying the key factors
impacting delay in Indian construction industry and then established the relationship
between the critical attributes. From the factor analysis, most critical factors of
construction delay were identified as (1) lack of commitment; (2) inefficient site
management; (3) poor site coordination; (4) improper planning; (5) lack of clarity in
project scope; (6) lack of communication; and (7) substandard contract. These findings
are expected to be significant contributions to Indian construction industry in controlling
the time overruns in construction contracts.

The study results of Jeffrey et.al. (1987) revealed factors influencing project execution as:
(1) The first factor that was developed was related to the underlying purpose for the
implementation and was classified project mission; (2) The second factor discerned was
that of top management support. Top management's support of the project may involve
aspects such as allocation of sufficient resources (including financial, manpower, time,
etc.) as well as project management's confidence in their support in the event of crisis. (3)
The third factor to be classified was that of project schedule/plan. The schedule should
include a satisfactory measurement system as a way of judging actual performance
against budget and time allowances. (4) The fourth factor that was determined is labeled
client consultation. (5) The fifth factor was concerned with personnel issues, including
recruitment, selection, and training. An important, but often overlooked, aspect of the

20
implementation process concerns the nature of the personnel involved. (6) The sixth
factor to be discussed was labeled technical tasks. It is important that the implementation
be well managed by people who understand it. (7) Client acceptance; in addition to client
consultation at an earlier stage in the project implementation process, it remains of
ultimate importance to determine whether the clients for whom the project has been
initiated will accept it. (8) The eighth factor to be considered is that of monitoring and
feedback. (9) The ninth factor was that of communication. The need for adequate
communication channels is extremely important in creating an atmosphere for successful
project implementation. (10) The tenth and final factor to emerge from classification of
the model is trouble-shooting.

Also, Aziz (2013), identified and recognized the main factors affecting performance of
construction projects to improve delay control or enhance project performance in
construction projects in Egypt. Based on previous literatures, the explored factors were
classified under the following nine (9) primary classifications as delay factors related to:
Consultant; Contractor; Design; Equipment; External; Labor; Material; Owner; and
Project itself.

Akogbe et al. (2013), conducted the study that focused on the analysis of delay factors
which affect the delay in construction completion in Benin in order to teach construction
project managers a specific managerial method that would be very useful for the success
of new development projects. The top ten important delay factors by their rank were
further identified as: Financial capability by contractor, financial difficulties by owner,
poor subcontractor performance, materials procurement of contractor, changes in
drawings of architect, inadequate planning and scheduling of contractor, slow inspection
of completed works by the consultant, equipment availability of contractor, preparation,
approval of drawings of consultant and acceptance of inadequate design drawings by
consultant.

21
 2.2.2 Challenges of manufacturing industry investment projects
Manufacturing industries investment projects are exposed to wide ranges of challenges
that range from manageable internal challenges to huge impact imposing external
challenges. In the context of developing countries the challenges are more difficult to
identify and it is problematic to dispense the ownership for the challenges. The
challenges begin at the investment decision making stages and continue throughout the
life cycle of investment projects by varying in types of challenges and impact
magnitudes.

Today, leaders are increasingly realizing that manufacturing is a major factor in helping
Africa achieve their goals of successfully reaching the next stage of economic
development. The African Union has put the sector front and center in its Agenda 2063.
African governments are seeking new and innovative ways to attract investment and
nurture industry, implementing strategies that involve targeted investment in
infrastructure, improved regional integration, and the establishment of special economic
zones (SEZs) for priority subsectors. The following challenges of manufacturing
investment in Africa are summarized by (Signe, 2018).

 Although an abundance of low-cost, under-employed labor exists already,

Africa‘s workforce is perceived to be lacking in skills and efficiency, a major
hindrance to investment, especially in more specialized forms of production.
 Electricity costs three times more in Africa than in comparable developing
regions and most manufacturers operating in West and East Africa have to rely on
expensive backup generators as a primary energy source, which adversely affects
their profit margins.
 Burdensome port and tax bureaucracies in Africa have contributed to the highest
direct and indirect costs of international trade in manufacturing in the world.

The factor influences mostly variation in the three highest-ranking variables: quality of
infrastructure, economic stability, and transparency of investment climate identified as
motivating factors (MF) for initial FDI in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). FDI location
decision in SSA is determined most strongly by political economy considerations. Also,

22
the policy and managerial implications are crucial to efforts to increase FDI flows to
SSA. The challenge is, once the FDI is made, bargaining power shifts from investor to
host because of sunk costs and the cost of early exit (Bartels et.al., 2015).

FDI can play an important role in the development efforts of the region; yet African
countries have not been successful in attracting significant FDI flows, reflecting largely
the combined effects of political and macroeconomic instability, weak infrastructure,
poor governance, inhospitable regulatory environments, intensification of competition for
FDI flows due to globalization, and poor marketing strategies. Investment promotion
activities in the region were carried out in an environment in which domestic policies
were by and large not conducive to foreign investment and so were not successful
(Dupasquier and Osakwe, 2005).

Institutions in the lines ranging from handling licensing to providing logistical support of
export of manufacturing industries require international standard of efficiency and it
remains to be a challenge in the years to come. The modern sector to which
manufacturing industry is a part involves many stakeholders who would be tempted to
get their share in the fast growing niche industries in the manner that corrupts the growth
of the sector. An apparent challenge in the industrialization process is the seemingly
misallocation of human capital; with the booming of the construction sector, daily wage
in the sector is by far greater than in the manufacturing as well as the service sector
(UNDP, 2017).

Public investments in basic infrastructures and social overheads are essential for private
investment in countries like Ethiopia where such basics are in serious shortage, and
where private sectors do not usually dare to go for. External debt, as long as it is used in
productive investment (without creating serious debt servicing burden on the economy)
has favorable effect on the private investment in countries like Ethiopia where there is
serious shortage of finance. High and protracted inflation rate could undercut private
investment by signaling macro-economic instability, and thereby weakening investors‘
desire and ability to invest. Likewise, unpredictable and inefficient investment climate
(which could be due to reasons such as frequent changes of investment policies and
requirements, inefficient bureaucracy, prolonged poor governance and rampant

23
corruption among others), would deteriorate investors‘ confidence and appetite (Adugna,
2013).

Because of existence of a number of comparative advantages in the country and to

strengthen its competitiveness the Government of Ethiopia offered multiple incentives for
the growth of the manufacturing sector. Though the manufacturing sector is a way out for
sustainable economic development its growth is not without challenges. Even though the
Ethiopia is blessed with natural resources, the manufacturing sector hasn‘t contributed
more than 5 percent to GDP. This is mainly attributed to challenges of the manufacturing
Sector in Ethiopia. The main challenges of the sector are low productivity of labor force
including entrepreneurial and managerial skills limitations, obsolete technologies used,
limited infrastructure development including trade logistics, limited access to finance,
insignificant research and development work done so far to the sector, poor institutional
framework and poor market information system (Eshetie, 2018).

2.3 Literature Gaps

Many researches have been done in challenges of PM in different sector projects as
explained in literature review. In Ethiopia also various PM practices and challenges of
effective PM have been conducted in various sectors with high attention to construction
industry. But very few researches were conducted in the area of manufacturing industry
investment projects. The conducted researches were mainly focus on investment practices
in general in Ethiopia, their challenges, and opportunities in several manufacturing
industries. These studies give more emphasis on investment environments, policy
frameworks, industry performances etc. Based on the literature review, relatively many
researches were also conducted in leather and leather products industry development
specific sector in Ethiopia such as researches done by (Eshetie, 2018); (Adugna 2013);
(Bartels et.al., 2015). The studies give more attention to challenges and opportunities in
industry along the leather value chain. As investment projects, it is difficult to get detail
studies in leather products manufacturing industry related to the project management
practices. Therefore, this study fills the literature gap by focusing on the challenges that
face the investment projects during the project execution phase in leather products
industry development.

24
 CHAPTER THREE

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Introduction
Under this chapter, how the research has been undertaken will be explained. The chapter
presents the research approach, research design, target population, data sources, data
collection methods, and analysis methods are clarified. To undertake this study, after the
research approach and research design was chosen the initial stage was the identification
of new as well as expansion investments of leather products industry that are owned by
domestic investors and FDI. After the targeted investment projects were identified data
was collected from various data sources and analyzed using appropriate data analysis
tools.

3.2 Research Approach and Design

3.2.1 Research Approach

In this study, the researcher has used quantitative research approach. The quantitative
approach was used to generate data in quantitative form which quantitative analysis could
be done from the study population that lead to interpret the results and reach at
appropriate conclusion.

3.2.2 Research Design

To undertake this study, the research has been designed in the more convenient manner to
collect sufficient data from the targeted investment projects. The research design used for
this study was descriptive study to focus on the existing problems that are negatively
affecting the investment projects of leather products industry. Descriptive research
includes surveys and fact-finding enquiries of different kinds and the major purpose of
descriptive research is description of the state of affairs as it exists at present (Kothari,
2004).

25
 3.3 Target Population
According to Fitsum et.al. (2018), currently there are 17 investment projects in leather
products industry development that are found at three different project stages i.e.
investments that commenced the operation, investments under execution, and
investments licensed yet not provided investment land – which are scattered throughout
the country over different cities. The projects selected for this assessment were projects
that have started in GTP I and II are under the stated three different stages where 3
projects are operational; 3 are under execution; and 1 local project is under preparation
that is included to extract the information the about the current situation for
preparation/readiness of project execution.

Due to inconvenience and time constraints to collect data from dispersed geographic
location of projects the researcher selected the projects within and around Addis Ababa in
their location. Accordingly, 7 (3 FDI and 4 domestic) investment projects out 17 total
projects are located within and around Addis Ababa city – most industrialized area in the
country. Hence, census survey method was used to collect primary data by which all
population was studied to provide information that can be used to draw conclusions about
the whole population. The sources of the data for this study were the project manager and
project team members of each project. Therefore, 52 questionnaires were distributed for
the census survey and 47 surveys were returned from respondents which accounts to 90%
response rate.

3.4 Data Sources

Quantitative data have been collected for this study. The primary data types have been
directly collected from project managers and project execution team members of the
project. The owners of investment projects were also the other sources of the primary
data were where the project manager was not hired or assigned for the projects and the
owner act as project manager that was true for domestic investments.

26
 3.5 Data Collection Methods
For collecting the primary data, due to the time constraints and sufficient data were
required in short time duration the researcher mainly used questionnaire data collection
method. There are several methods of collecting primary data, particularly in surveys and
descriptive researches; important ones are observation method, interview method,
through questionnaires, through schedules (Kothari, 2004). So, by taking in to account
the constraining factors the researcher applied data collection through structured
questionnaires.

3.6 Validity and Reliability

The concept of validity refers to what the test or measurement strategy measures and how
well it does so. Conceptually, validity seeks to answer the question: whether the
instrument or measurement approach measures what it is supposed to measure (Marczyk
et.al., 2005). Therefore, to maintain the internal validity the researcher developed well-
structured questionnaires, to collect valid data from the respondents. All population has
been studied to keep the content validity throughout the study.

The reliability of the collected data has been tested using Cronbach‘s Alpha. According
to George and Mallery, 2003, Cronbach‘s Alpha is used to measure the reliability of the
questionnaire between each variables and the mean of the whole variables of the
questionnaire. The range of Cronbach's coefficient alpha (α) value is between 0.00 and +
1.00, and the higher values reflects a higher degree of internal consistency.

Table 3.1: Cronbach's Alpha

Reliability Statistics

Cronbach's Alpha N of Items

.975 67

The above table 3.1 shows the cronbach‘s alpha calculated using SPSS for all variables
the respondents asked to respond on 5 point Likert scale. The result indicates that
cronbach‘s alpha is measured 0.975 which reflects very high degree of internal
consistency.

27
 3.7 Data Analysis Methods
The collected primary data were analyzed and presented in a way that helps the
researcher answer the research questions and meet the objective of the study. The
researcher used appropriate methods to analyze qualitative and quantitative data types. In
most types of research studies, the process of data analysis involves the following three
steps: preparing the data for analysis, analyzing the data, and interpreting the data
(Marczyk et.al., 2005). Accordingly, the preparation of all the relevant data was carefully
done; the data were analyzed using descriptive statistics for quantitative data; and finally
the interpretation of the analysis result was done to reach at valid conclusions.

3.8 Ethical Considerations

The ethical consideration has been given high attention in this study during the courses
study processes. To minimizing the bias during data collection well-structured standard
questionnaire was used for data collection that has avoided sensitive and leading
questions to be asked. Additionally, the aim of the study was clearly explained for
understanding of the respondents and only volunteered respondents are included in the
research to avoid the offended responses by the participants. To avoid the likelihood of
plagiarism, all the consulted literatures in this study are properly acknowledged.

28
 CHAPTER FOUR

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 Introduction
In this chapter, the collected data from primary sources, the analysis of the data to answer
the research questions from which objectives of the study was derived, and the findings
from the data analysis are presented.

The primary data were collected through well-structured questionnaire from the
owners/clients, project sponsors, project managers, project teams, and consultants of 7
selected leather products manufacturing investment projects in Addis Ababa. As
explained in chapter 3 (3.7), the collected primary data were analyzed using descriptive
statistics using Statistical Packages for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings from the
analysis are presented using tables and graphs and interpreted to reach at valid
conclusions.

4.2 General Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents

Based on the information gathered through the questionnaire, the demographic
characteristics of respondents are explained below.

4.2.1 Sex of Respondents

The following graph (Figure 4.1) shows the sex analysis of the respondents. From total of
52 questionnaires distributed, 47 questionnaires were fully responded. Out of the total
respondents, 38 were male and 9 were female which approximately accounts to 81%
male and 19% female. From this result, it is well understood that most of participants in
the project execution in leather products investment projects are male.

29
 Figure 4.1: Sex of Respondents

4.2.2 Age of Respondents

Figure 4.2: Ages of Respondents

30
The above bar chart (Figure 4.2) shows the age analysis of the respondents. The age of
respondents was analyzed from the responded questionnaire. Accordingly, the frequency
of age group shows that the respondents are within the productive age that ranges from
18 – 45. As shown in the bar chart, from 47 respondents 5 respondents were between 18
and 25, 22 respondents were between 26 and 35, and 20 respondents were between 36
and 45 age groups.

4.2.3 Educational Level of Respondents

Figure 4.3: Educational Levels of Respondents

The above bar chart (Figure 4.3) depicts the educational backgrounds of the respondents.
As it is clearly shown in the chart, most of the respondents have high educational
backgrounds with better analytical skills to respond to the questionnaires. From total of
47 respondents, 20 respondents have 2nd degree and above, 23 respondents have 1st
degree, 3 respondents have diploma, and one respondent is high school.

4.2.4 The Role of Respondents in the Project

The role of respondents in the project was analyzed and the result is shown in the
following bar chart (Figure 4.4). As the frequency analysis has indicated in the chart, the
maximum numbers of respondents are project team members followed by project

31
managers which are 28 and 7 respectively. The remaining respondents are 5 consultants,
4 other employees, and 3 clients. So, the respondents have sufficient information about
the projects to confidently respond to the questionnaires.

Figure 4.4: Role of Respondents in the Project

4.3 General Information about the Project

4.3.1 Forms of Business

The following table 4.1 shows the frequency table of data analysis result about the forms
of business of the investment projects.

Table 4.1: Form of business

Form of business
Forms business Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
private limited company 28 59.6 59.6 59.6
share company 15 31.9 31.9 91.5
Valid
corporate 4 8.5 8.5 100.0
Total 47 100.0 100.0

32
As we can see from the table, 59.6% respondents were from private limited companies,
31.9% respondents were from share companies, and 8.5 respondents were from corporate
business forms. This indicates that there are no state owned projects in this study.

4.3.2 Ownership of Investment Projects

The following table 4.2 shows the frequency table of data analysis result of ownership of
investment projects. The data analysis result shows the frequency and percentage of
ownership of investment projects in which respondents were working. Accordingly, out
of 47 total respondents, 19 or 40.4% participants were working in domestic investment
projects and 28 or 59.6% were working in FDI projects during the survey. So, this
proportion of respondents is good enough to get necessary information for analysis of
comparison between the two ownership of investment.

Table 4.2: Ownership of investment

Ownership of investment
Ownership Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
domestic investment 19 40.4 40.4 40.4
Valid foreign direct investment 28 59.6 59.6 100.0
Total 47 100.0 100.0

4.3.3 Type of Investment Project

This analysis result indicates the types of investment projects that divide the projects into
two main categories as new and expansion of existing projects. So, the below frequency
table 4.3 illustrates the distribution of respondents in each investment categories.
Accordingly, out of 47 total respondents, 28 or 59.6% participants were working in new
investment projects and 19 or 40.4% were working in expansion during the survey.

33
Table 4.3: Types of Investment Project

Type of investment project

Type Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
new investment 28 59.6 59.6 59.6
Valid Expansion investment 19 40.4 40.4 100.0
Total 47 100.0 100.0

4.3.4 Product Category of Investment

The analysis of product category of the investment project is to asses in which leather
products category are the projects currently involved. The frequency table 4.4 depicts the
result of data analysis about the product category that was analyzed from the census
survey of leather products industry development project. The table shows that 46.8% of
respondents work in investment projects engaged in footwear manufacturing, the largest
frequency indicated in the table. The second large frequency indicates that the companies
engaged in the manufacturing two and more product category. In this survey, the
respondents from projects engaged in leather goods and leather glove are equal whose
frequencies are 2 or 4.3%. Only one participant responded working in project engaged in
leather garment manufacturing.

Table 4.4: Product category of investment

Product category of investment

Product type Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
footwear 22 46.8 46.8 46.8
leather goods 2 4.3 4.3 51.1
leather garment 1 2.1 2.1 53.2
Valid leather glove 2 4.3 4.3 57.4
two and more product
20 42.6 42.6 100.0
category
Total 47 100.0 100.0

34
 4.3.5 Time of Implementations Started
The frequency table 4.5 indicated below illustrates the year of the leather products
manufacturing investment projects implementation started. The analysis result shows the
distribution of when projects under this assessment were commenced. The table clearly
indicates the large number of respondents, 23 or 48.9, were working in projects started in
2015. The next large percentages of respondents were working in projects started in 2016
(recent projects) and projects started before 2014 (very old projects) which is 17% for
each or total of 34%. The remaining participants were working in projects that have
started in 2017 and 2018 whose percentages are 8.5% and 4.3 respectively. This
distribution makes the gathered data more reliable as it helps to gather data from the
combined proportion of old and recent projects.

Table 4.5: Time of Implementation Started

Time of Implementation Started

Time Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
before 2014 8 17.0 17.0 17.0
2014 2 4.3 4.3 21.3
2015 23 48.9 48.9 70.2
Valid 2016 8 17.0 17.0 87.2
2017 4 8.5 8.5 95.7
2018 2 4.3 4.3 100.0
Total 47 100.0 100.0

4.3.6 Current Status of the Investment Projects

The current status of the projects was analyzed to understand in which state were the
projects exist during the survey as shown the following table 4.6. So, out of the 47
respondents 24 people or 51% of total participants responded the project they were
working in was operational. Next populous participants, 12 people or 25.5% of total
respondents responded the project they were working in was under construction. The
remaining participants working in projects: under installation are 12.8%,
ready/preparation for project execution are 10.6%. Therefore, the data collected from

35
projects under such varying status are useful to find more reliable data in every stages of
projects execution.

Table 4.6: Current status of the project

Current status of the project

Project Status Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
readiness/preparation for
5 10.6 10.6 10.6
execution
under construction 12 25.5 25.5 36.2
Valid
under installation 6 12.8 12.8 48.9
Operational 24 51.1 51.1 100.0
Total 47 100.0 100.0

4.4 Internal Challenges of Project Execution

The internal challenges of project execution are focused on the challenges that could be
managed within the companies to enhance the performance of the projects execution. In
this study, after comprehensive review of literatures in the project execution and
investment projects, major internal project execution challenges were identified and
respondents were asked to rate the questions listed by the researcher under each
challenges based on 5 point Likert scale.

Accordingly, the major identified internal challenges are: Availability of Clear Project
Plan, Level of Readiness for Project Execution, Practical Execution Capability, and
Stakeholder (Client) Supports.

Data were collected using five point Liker scale as: 5 = Strongly Agree, 4 = Agree, 3=
Neutral, 2 = Disagree and 1 = Strongly Disagree. The analysis was made using
descriptive statistics like frequency, mean and relative importance index (RII).

Then, to facilitate the discussions using the mean value results of Likert scale analysis,
the Likert scale mean has been is categorized based on the works of previous authors as:

36
 Table 4.7: Categories of Likert scale description

Likert Scale Likert Description Value Allocation

categories

1 Not at All 1.0 – 1.49

2 Slightly Agree 1.5 – 2.49

3 Moderately Agree 2.5 – 3.49

4 Mostly Agree 3.5 – 4.49

5 Completely Agree 4.5 – 5.00

Source: Alston and Miller (2002) and Moohammed et.al (2014)

For this study, since the questionnaire were asked in the positive statement, the lower the
mean value the higher the challenge and vise-versa. Therefore the scale was categorized
by reversing the value as: 1.00 – 1.49 = Completely Challenging, 1.5 – 2.49 = Mostly
Challenging, 2.5 – 3.49 = Moderately Challenging, 3.5 – 4.49 = Slightly Challenging,
and 4.5 – 5.00 = Not Challenging at All.

Also, the relative importance indexes (RII) were calculated for all challenges and
prioritizations of challenges have been made based on RII scores. Following the works of
authors Tam and Le, 2006, relative importance index ranges from 0.00 to 1.00 and the
following equation was used to calculate RII:

Where:

 ―W‖ is the weighting given to each variables by the respondents from 1 to 5, (n1 =
number of respondents for Strongly Disagree, n2 = number of respondents for
Disagree, n3 = number of respondents for Neutral, n4 = number of respondents for
Agree, n5 = number of respondents for Strongly Agree).
 ―A‖ is the maximum weight (i.e. 5 for this study).
 ―N‖ is the total number of participants.

37
 4.4.1 Availability of Clear Project Plan
A project plan is indispensable. Not only is it a roadmap to how the work is scheduled,
but it is also a tool to aid in decision making. Though a project plan is dynamic and
expected to change, a complete plan will clearly state the tasks that need to be done, why
they are necessary, who will do what, when the project will be completed, what resources
will be needed, and what criteria must be met in order for the project to be declared
complete and successful. There are three benefits to spending the effort needed to
develop a good project plan. They are: planning reduces uncertainty, planning increases
understanding, and planning improves efficiency (Wysocki, 2014). Therefore, as the
absence of a project plan challenges the performances of project execution, the
availability of a complete and clear project plan was analyzed from the collected data
from leather products manufacturing investment projects.

The following table 4.8 shows the analysis result of the availability of clear project plan.
The result is generated from the questionnaire responses of five point Likert scale and 47
response data were analyzed for the identified major variables that constitute a project
plan.

Table 4.8: Availability of Clear Project Plan

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII
The Project scope is clear 47 1 5 3.55 0.710

Clear project time schedule is available 47 1 5 3.32 0.664

Clear project cost plan is available 47 2 5 3.36 0.672

Clear project quality plan is documented 47 1 5 3.06 0.612

Clear project risk management plan is in place 47 1 5 2.87 0.574

Clear Project communication plan is in place 47 1 5 2.94 0.588

Clear Project HR plan is available 47 1 5 3.32 0.664

Clear project procurement management plan is in

47 1 5 3.17 0.634
place
Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 3.20
Average RII of all variable 0.640

38
As one can observe from the above table, the mean values of the responses regarding the
variables that constitute the project plan are between the ranges of 2.5 – 3.49 category.
These mean value indicate that the respondents moderately agree there are clear project
risk management plans and communication management plans than others. The grand
mean value of all variables is calculated 3.20 and its average RII value is calculated 0.640
(i.e. 64%). This indicates that the project under assessment have been moderately
challenged by availability of clear project plans.

There are considerable differences between the domestic investments and FDI with
respect to availability of clear project plan. The following comparison table 4.9 shows the
comparison of mean values between the variables of clear project plan.

Table 4.9: Comparison for Availability of Clear Project Plan

Report

Ownership

communication plan is in
Clear project cost plan is

Clear Project HR plan is

management plan is in

management plan is in
schedule is available
The Project scope is

Clear project quality

plan is documented
Clear project time

Clear project risk

Clear Project

Clear project
procurement
available

available
place

place
place
clear

Mean 3.16 3.16 3.11 2.58 2.32 2.47 3.32 3.00

domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19
RII 0.632 0.632 0.622 0.516 0.464 0.494 0.664 0.6
Mean 3.82 3.43 3.54 3.39 3.25 3.25 3.32 3.29
foreign direct
investment N 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28
RII 0.764 0.686 0.708 0.678 0.65 0.65 0.664 0.658
Mean 3.55 3.32 3.36 3.06 2.87 2.94 3.32 3.17
Total
N 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47
RII 0.71 0.664 0.672 0.612 0.574 0.588 0.664 0.634

As illustrated in the above table 4.8, the analysis result of comparison between domestic
and FDI projects with respect to their mean and RII scores show the difference between
the domestic investments and FDI for availability of clear project plan. The result shows
that having clear and complete project plan is more challenging for domestic investment

39
projects than FDI in leather products manufacturing industry development (LPMID)
projects.

4.4.2 People Readiness/project staffing/

People readiness during project execution is a critical requirement for projects to be
completed within budget and on schedule. If people are not trained and qualified
adequately at each milestone, the risk exposures of the organization are increased beyond
the acceptable tolerance of the organization (Lutchman, 2011).

Table 4.10: People Readiness/project staffing/

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII
Project manager is hired on time and properly oriented. 0.608
47 1 5 3.04
Project manager has sufficient work experiences. 0.656
47 1 5 3.28
Project Manager has appropriate project management
competencies. 47 1 5 3.28 0.656

Project teams are hired on schedule for project 0.596

47 1 5 2.98
execution.
All personnel are properly trained, assessed and 0.566
47 1 5 2.83
qualified.
Project team are committed, focused, and matured. 0.604
47 1 5 3.02
Expectations, responsibilities, and authorities are
clarified for the workforces. 47 1 5 3.02 0.604

Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variable 3.06
Average RII of all variable 0.612

The above table 4.10 shows the data analysis results of seven identified variables to
assess the people readiness (project staffing). The result of data analysis indicated least
mean value of 2.83 at personnel training, assessment, and qualification for project
execution. The grand mean score of people readiness/project staffing/ calculated 3.06 and
RII is 0.612 or 61.2%. The result lies between the categories 2.5 – 3.49 which reflect
respondents moderately agree the project executing companies make proper readiness for
project execution. Therefore, as the analysis result indicated in the table above, the

40
challenge of project staffing or people readiness for project execution in the LPMID
project is moderate.

Table 4.11: Comparison for People Readiness/project staffing/

Report

Ownership

Project teams are hired on

authorities are clarified for

All personnel are properly

committed, focused, and

Project manager is hired

trained, assessed and

Project manager has

Project Manager has

on time and properly

responsibilities, and
schedule for project
appropriate project

Project team are

the workforces.
sufficient work

competencies

Expectations,
management
experiences

execution.

matured.
oriented.

qualified
Mean 2.58 2.79 3.05 2.32 2.47 2.68 2.79
Domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19 19 19 19
RII 0.516 0.558 0.61 0.464 0.494 0.536 0.558
foreign Mean 3.36 3.61 3.43 3.43 3.07 3.25 3.18
direct
N 28 28 28 28 28 28 28
investment
RII 0.672 0.722 0.686 0.686 0.614 0.65 0.636
Mean 3.04 3.28 3.28 2.98 2.83 3.02 3.02
Total N 47 47 47 47 47 47 47
RII 0.608 0.656 0.656 0.596 0.566 0.604 0.604

As indicated in the table 4.11 above, the mean values and RII of variables for project
staffing of domestic investment projects is less than that of the corresponding variable for
FDI projects. The comparison of mean and RII for every variables shows that the
domestic investment projects experienced more challenges than FDI projects in terms of
project staffing in LPMID during project execution.

4.4.2.1 Internal Financial Resources

The financial sources are the most important element for effective project execution. All
these readiness require the supply of finance on schedule that is based on clear budget
plan. Therefore, due to the fact level of readiness for the project execution is critical
factor of project performance; the level of financial readiness has been analyzed in
leather products manufacturing projects.

41
Here the challenge levels of internal financial resources have been analyzed and
presented. The following table 4.12 describes the result generated from data analysis
about the internal financial resource variables.

Table 4.12: Analysis Result for Internal Financial Resources

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII
Internal financial capacity (equity) of the project is high. 0.646
47 1 5 3.23
All required finances are supplied for project staffing,
site preparation, building material procurement, and 47 1 5 2.72 0.544
equipment procurement on schedule.
Project budgets are properly estimated during 0.578
47 2 5 2.89
estimation.
Adequate accounting procedures and practices are
available for control and appropriate measures to 47 2 5 3.23 0.646
ensure adequate control.
Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 3.02
Average RII of all variables 0.604

In the above table, least mean and RII value are registered at ―the supply of required
financial resources for project staffing, building material procurement, equipment
procurement on schedule‖ and the mean result is 2.72 and RII value is 0.544. The second
challenge is proper estimation of project budget which has the mean value of 2.89 and
RII value of 0.578. As per the analysis result, internal financial capacity (equity) of the
project and their accounting procedures show the mean values between 2.5 – 3.49 with
the overall mean of the internal financial resource analysis 3.02 and average RII of 0.604.
Therefore, internal financial resource was moderate challenge during project execution in
LPMID projects.

In the table 4.13 below, the mean and RII score of domestic investment and FDI have
been compared with respect to the internal financial challenge variables. Thus, the result
shows every variable in domestic investment projects experienced less mean and RII
values than FDI. With least mean value of 2.05 or RII score of 0.41, the analysis result
indicated domestic investment projects has experienced high challenges to supply
required resources for project staffing, building material procurement, and equipment

42
procurement on schedule. The second and third financial challenges of the domestic
investment projects are proper budget estimations and financial capacity of investors with
mean values of 2.53 and 2.58 (RII values 0.506 and 0.516) respectively. As clearly
shown from the table, the FDI has relatively experienced challenge of budget estimation
compared to other variables that has 3.14 mean score or 0.628 RII score.

Table 4.13: Comparison for Internal Financial Resources

Report

Ownership Internal All required finances are Project Adequate accounting

financial supplied for project budgets are procedures and
capacity staffing, site preparation, properly practices are
(equity) of the building material estimated available for control
project is procurement, and during and appropriate
high. equipment procurement estimation. measures to ensure
on schedule. adequate control.

Mean 2.58 2.05 2.53 3.05

domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19
RII 0.516 0.41 0.506 0.61
Mean 3.68 3.18 3.14 3.36
foreign direct
investment N 28 28 28 28
RII 0.736 0.636 0.628 0.672
Mean 3.23 2.72 2.89 3.23
Total N 47 47 47 47
RII 0.646 0.544 0.578 0.646

4.4.3 Physical Resources

The process readiness focuses on ensuring processes are in place to allow the continuous
operation of a facility on a sustained basis. For industrial plants, process readiness is very
important component of project execution. Another critical requirement for project
execution is System readiness that refers to the mechanical completeness of all operating
systems of the facility.

43
Table 4.14: Analysis Results for Physical Resources

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII

Site preparation is completed on schedule 47 2 5 3.23 0.646

Essential building materials are acquired on

47 1 5 3.17 0.634
schedule
Essential building machineries are procured on
47 1 4 3.04 0.608
schedule
Essential equipment are acquired on schedule 47 1 4 3.06 0.612

Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 3.13

Average RII of all variables 0.626

The above table 4.14 illustrates the descriptive statistics analysis of physical resources for
project execution. The overall mean value of the analysis is 3.13 and average RII% is
0.626 or 62.6%. Regarding the physical resources, there is relatively more challenges in
two variables (procurement of essential machineries on schedule and procurement of
essential equipment on schedule) than remaining variables with 3.04 and 3.06 mean
values respectively. Grand mean score of 3.13 or RII% 62.6% show respondents
moderately agree that the project execution has been challenged by availability physical
resources. Therefore, the physical resources of the project undertaking companies are
moderate challenge for the success of projects during execution.

Table 4.15: Comparison for Physical Resources

Report

Ownership Site preparation is Essential building Essential Essential

completed on materials are building equipment are
schedule acquired on machineries are acquired on
schedule procured on schedule
schedule
Mean 2.84 2.42 2.53 2.53
domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19
RII 0.568 0.484 0.506 0.506
Mean 3.50 3.68 3.39 3.43
foreign direct
investment N 28 28 28 28
RII 0.700 0.736 0.678 0.686
Mean 3.23 3.17 3.04 3.06
Total N 47 47 47 47
RII 0.646 0.634 0.608 0.612

44
The above table 4.15 shows the comparison of mean values of domestic and FDI in
relation with the preparation of physical resources for project execution. The table clearly
indicates three variables for the assessment of the challenges of physical resource possess
mean values are between the rage of 2.5 – 3.49 except one variable (essential building
materials are acquired on schedule). It also exhibits the domestic investment projects of
leather products manufacturing projects are more challenged with the physical resources
than the FDI projects.

4.4.4 Practical Execution Capability

Practical execution capability is very important to utilize the available allocated project
resources to realize the project goal timely, cost efficiently, and with the required quality.
It is clear that the competencies, experiences and attitudes of project manager and project
team are very essential ingredients for practical capability of effective project execution.
Based on the data collected from the target population, being identified as internal
challenges, the practical project execution capability in leather products manufacturing
projects has been analyzed.

Table 4.16: Analysis Result for Practical Execution Capability

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII

PM leadership skills to enhance staffs' labour productivity 47 2 5 3.30 0.660

Conflicts are properly managed 47 1 5 2.87 0.574

PM properly tracks project’s financial expenditures 47 2 5 3.11 0.622

Effective and efficient utilization of physical resources 47 2 5 3.21 0.642

Proactively follow up project risks plans 47 1 5 2.81 0.562

3.15 0.630
PM continuously tracks project performances and manage
47 1 5
changes
PM reviews and updates the project plan 47 1 5 3.02 0.604

3.13 0.626
PM maintains continuous communication with
47 2 5
stakeholders
3.09 0.618
Effort to maintain the planned project schedule, time, and
47 2 5
quality

45
 PM frequently documents lessons learned 47 1 4 2.85 0.570

Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 3.05

Average RII of all variables 0.610

The table 4.16 above illustrates the assessment result of practical execution capability in
investment projects of leather products manufacturing. For the assessment of practical
capability 10 variables were selected that constitute practical project execution capability
of investing companies to increase the project performance.

Hence, as it is possible to observe from the result the overall mean value of the practical
project execution capability has 3.05 and RII% 61%. From the assessed variables, three
variables exhibit relatively less mean and RII scores. These variables are: Proactive
follow up project risks plans; PM frequently documents lessons learned; and Conflicts are
properly managed – which have 2.81 (56.2%); 2.85 (57%); 2.87 (57.4%) mean and RII%
values respectively. This indicates that, these variables are more challenging than other
variables of practical project execution challenges in LPMID projects in general.

Table 4.17: Comparison for Practical Execution Capability

Report

Ownership
Effort to maintain the
Proactively follow up
efficient utilization of
PM leadership skills

communication with

schedule, time, and

documents lessons
updates the project
PM properly tracks

physical resources
properly managed

performances and
project risks plans
to enhance staffs'

project’s financial

manage changes
labor productivity

PM continuously

PM reviews and

planned project

PM frequently
PM maintains
tracks project
Effective and
expenditures

stakeholders
Conflicts are

continuous

learned
quality
plan

domestic Mean 2.95 2.95 3.21 3.26 2.63 2.74 2.74 3.05 2.89 2.53
investme N 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19
nt
RII 0.59 0.59 0.642 0.652 0.526 0.548 0.548 0.61 0.578 0.506
foreign Mean 3.54 2.82 3.04 3.18 2.93 3.43 3.21 3.18 3.21 3.07
direct
investme N 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28 28
nt RII 0.708 0.564 0.608 0.636 0.586 0.686 0.642 0.636 0.642 0.614
Mean 3.30 2.87 3.11 3.21 2.81 3.15 3.02 3.13 3.09 2.85
Total N 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47
RII 0.66 0.574 0.622 0.642 0.562 0.63 0.604 0.626 0.618 0.57

46
The table 4.17 above shows the comparison of mean between the domestic investment
projects and FDI regarding the practical project execution capability in leather products
industry development projects. The result shows FDIs have had less mean and RII scores
at three variables than domestic investments while domestics have had less mean and RII
scores at remaining seven variables. So, this analysis result indicates domestic investment
projects have experienced more challenges in the practical project execution capability
than FDI projects did.

4.4.5 Stakeholder (Client) Supports

Without stakeholder support it is difficult to expect the project success. Though
stakeholders can be either internal or external to the organization, for this study internal
stakeholders have been considered. Stakeholders buy-in is crucial for the successful
completion of projects. Thus, as one of factors in many projects here also the stakeholder
support is analyzed and the result is presented as below.

Table 4.18: Analysis Result for Stakeholder (Client) Supports

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII
Project is highly aligned with the strategies of the
47 2 5 3.45 0.690
company
clients’ interest to project outcome 47 2 5 3.40 0.680

Clients' commitment for successful completion of

46 2 5 3.39 0.678
project
Clients frequently ask changes request 47 1 5 3.17 0.634

Project sponsors provide finances as per the

47 1 5 2.94 0.588
schedule
Stakeholders give feedback for progress reports
47 2 5 3.45 0.690
and updated plans
Valid N (listwise) 46
Grand mean of all variables 3.3
Average RII of all variables 0.660
The analysis result in the above table 4.18 shows the client support assessment towards
the challenge of project execution. All mean scores for each variables are within the
range of 2.5 – 3.49. This result table specifies the timely supply of required finances by
the project sponsors is challenging issue in leather products manufacturing investment

47
projects in general; consequently this finding supports the finding of challenges in the
financial analysis in section 4.4.2.2.

Based on the result, the overall mean value for the client support shows 3.3 and average
RII of all variables is 0.66 (66%) that is highest score among all the previous mean
values. Even though it lies in the range of moderate challenges (2.5 – 3.49), this result
indicates there is relatively better performance for client support than other variables
analyzed in the previous sections as internal challenges.

Table 4.19: Comparison for Stakeholder (Client) Supports

Report

Ownership Project is clients’ Clients' Clients Project Stakeholders

highly aligned interest commitment frequently sponsors give feedback
with the to project for successful ask provide for progress
strategies of outcome completion of changes finances as reports and
the company project request per the updated plans
schedule
Mean 3.74 3.47 3.44 3.00 2.37 3.16
domestic
investment N 19 19 18 19 19 19
RII 0.748 0.694 0.688 0.6 0.474 0.632
Mean 3.25 3.36 3.36 3.29 3.32 3.64
foreign direct
investment N 28 28 28 28 28 28
RII 0.65 0.672 0.672 0.658 0.664 0.728
Mean 3.45 3.40 3.39 3.17 2.94 3.45
Total N 47 47 46 47 47 47
RII 0.69 0.68 0.678 0.634 0.588 0.69

In the table 4.19 shown above to illustrate the comparison of mean scores between the
domestic and FDI projects, all mean scores of every variables is between 2.5 – 3.49
except for one variable (Project sponsors provide finances as per the schedule) which has
the least score of 2.37 and RII% score of 47.4%. The mean score of ―Project sponsors
provide finances as per the schedule‖ falls in the range of 1.5 – 2.49 or mostly
challenging. In FDI projects all variables selected to assess the clients support show fall
within the range of 2.5 – 3.49, except one variable which has a mean and RII% score of
3.64 and 72.8% (i.e. stakeholders give feedback for progress reports and updated plans).
The mean value of ―stakeholders give feedback for progress reports and updated plans‖
falls in the rage of slightly challenging (3.59 – 4.49). From this comparison table, it
possible to understand that domestic investors face high challenges to support the project

48
with the supply of necessary finances on schedule that lead to lagging of project
performance during Project execution in LPMID projects.

4.5 Prioritizing the Internal Challenges

The challenges identified and analyzed in the previous sections need to be systematically
addressed to increase the performance of the projects. To address these issues
prioritization is suitable approach that insights the stakeholders which challenge should
be given more weightage and primacy. For this reason, the identified and analyzed
challenges have been prioritized based on their measure of grand mean score for internal
and external challenges.

The table 4.20 shown below was used to present the ranks of internal challenges in order
to prioritize the challenges for systematic approach of appropriate actions. Thus, the
identified challenges for assessment of internal challenges have been prioritized based on
their mean score and RII score that were presented in previous sections of 4.4.

As illustrated in the table, the least mean and RII value indicates the highest challenges
the project execution has encountered and vise-versa. The overall scores of mean and RII
were used as cutting values to consider highly challenging internal issues. So, overall
mean = 3.13 or RII% = 62.6% was used as cutting value. Therefore, the most top internal
challenges that have mean and RII values less than the overall mean and RII scores of
internal challenges (i.e. 3.13 and 0.626) in project execution of the leather products
manufacturing investment projects are: internal financial resources; practical project
execution capability; and people readiness (project staffing).

49
Table 4.2: Result for Prioritizing Internal Challenges

S. RII score Rank in

No Grand mean Ascending
Internal Challenges score Order
1. 0.640
Availability of Clear Project Plan 3.2 5
2. 0.612
People Readiness/project staffing/ 3.06 3
3. 0.604
Internal Financial Resources 3.02 1
4. 0.626
Physical Resources 3.13 4
5. 0.610
Practical Execution Capability 3.05 2
6. 0.660
Stakeholder (Client) Supports 3.3 6
OVERALL MEAN and RII
Scores of Internal Challenges 3.13 0.626

Apart from the prioritization of the identified internal challenges, the individual variables
in each identified challenges group need to be prioritized to systematically address the
challenges and enhance the project performance during the project execution of leather
products manufacturing investment projects. Accordingly, to concentrate the effort on
more challenges indicating variables, the variables that showed mean and RII scores less
than (3.13 and 0.626) respectively have been considered and prioritized in the ascending
order.

The following table 4.21 shows the prioritized internal challenges variables based on
cutting RII score. Thus, variables those have RII scores less than 0.626 or 62.6% (the
overall RII score of internal challenges) are ranked in ascending order. This ranking is
helpful to go for addressing the issues in order of their level of challenges.

50
Table 4.21: Result of Prioritizing Internal Challenges Variables with mean value score less than
3.13

S. Rank in
No Ascending
Internal Challenges Variables with mean value score less RII Order of
than 3.13 or RII 0.626 Score RII score
All required finances are supplied for project staffing, site
preparation, building material procurement, and equipment 0.544
1 procurement on schedule. 1
Proactively follow up project risks plans 0.562
2 2
0.566
3 All personnel are properly trained, assessed and qualified. 3
PM frequently documents lessons learned 0.570
4 4
0.574
5 Clear project risk management plan is in place 5
Conflicts are properly managed 0.574
6 5
Project budgets are properly estimated during estimation. 0.578
7 7
Essential building machineries are procured on schedule. 0.578
8 7
0.588
9 Clear Project communication plan is in place 9
Project sponsors provide finances as per the schedule 0.588
10 9
Essential equipment are acquired on schedule. 0.592
11 11
0.596
12 Project teams are hired on schedule for project execution. 12
0.604
13 Project team are committed, focused, and matured. 13
Expectations, responsibilities, and authorities are clarified for the 0.604
14 workforces. 13
0.604
15 PM reviews and updates the project plan 13
Internal Financial Resources 0.604
16 13
Essential building machineries are procured on schedule 0.608
17 17
Essential building machineries are procured on schedule 0.608
18 17
Practical Execution Capability 0.610
19 19
0.612
20 Clear project quality plan is documented 20
Essential equipment are acquired on schedule 0.612
21 20
People Readiness/project staffing/ 0.612
22 20
Essential equipment are acquired on schedule 0.612
23 20

51
 0.618
24 Effort to maintain the planned project schedule, time, and quality 24
Effort to maintain the planned project schedule, time, and quality 0.618
25 24
0.622
26 PM properly tracks project’s financial expenditures 26
PM properly tracks project’s financial expenditures 0.622
27 26
0.626
28 PM maintains continuous communication with stakeholders 28
Physical Resources 0.626
29 28
PM maintains continuous communication with stakeholders 0.626
30 28

4.6 External Challenges of Project Execution

The external challenges of project execution are focused on the challenges that are out of
the control of project executing companies. For this study, major external challenges of
project execution were identified and respondents were asked to rate variables based on 5
point Likert scale. The identified internal challenges are: Government Regulations and
system Issues, Infrastructure Issues, Loan Issues, Government Support, Supply Issues,
and Issues Related to Contractors. In the similar way to the above internal challenge
assessment, for this analysis the five point Liker scale was used as: 5 = Strongly Agree, 4
= Agree, 3 = Neutral, 2 = Disagree and 1 = Strongly Disagree.

Also, as explained in 4.4, since the questionnaire are asked in the positive statement, the
lower the mean value the higher the challenge and vise-versa. Therefore by reversing the
value, 1.00 – 1.49 = Completely Challenging, 1.5 – 2.49 = Mostly Challenging, 2.5 –
3.49 = Moderately Challenging, 3.5 – 4.49 = Slightly Challenging, and 4.5 – 5.00 = Not
Challenging at All. The relative importance indexes are also calculated in the same way
they have been explained in in section 4.4.

4.6.1 Government Regulations and system Issues

The government related issues are other factor that either enable or challenge the success
of project execution. Therefore, to what extent the government regulation and systems
have challenged the investment projects in investment projects of leather products
manufacturing industry is analyzed and the result is presented as below.

52
The table 4.22 shown below indicates government regulation and system issues that are
analyzed using descriptive statistics. The grand mean values and average RII values are
2.90 and 0.580 respectively. All variables show mean value results between the range of
2.5 – 3.49, in the moderately challenging category. Based on this result, the current
government regulation and systems with respect to investment projects can be considered
as a moderate challenge for leather products industry development projects.

Table 4.22: Analysis Result for Government Regulations and system Issues

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII

Investment licensing process is easy 47 1 5 2.91 0.582

Gov't regulations are convenient to access investment

47 1 5 2.62 0.524
land
Gov't Investment schemes are motivating for
47 1 5 3.02 0.604
investment project
The working system of government is transparent and
47 1 5 2.74 0.548
fair
Gov't system does not discriminate or favor domestic
47 1 5 3.19 0.638
and FDIs
Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 2.90
Average RII of all variables 0.580

According to the comparison table 4.23 shown below to compare the mean scores of
domestic investments and FDI projects, domestic investment projects has experienced
more challenges in relation with government regulations and systems. Both domestic and
FDI projects experienced closely similar challenges with the variable that assess the
access to investment land; with mean scores of 2.63 or RII 0.526 for domestic investment
and 2.61 or RII 0.522 for FDI projects.

53
Table 4.23: Comparison for Government Regulations and system Issues
Report

Ownership

regulations are

discriminate or
favor domestic

high access to
government is
motivating for
convenient to

Gov't system
schemes are

The working

location has
transparent
Investment

Investment
investment

investment
process is

system of

and FDIs
licensing

does not
and fair

Project
access

project
Gov't

Gov't
easy

road
land
Mean 2.53 2.63 2.63 2.37 2.84 2.37
domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19 19 19
RII 0.506 0.526 0.526 0.474 0.568 0.474
foreign Mean 3.18 2.61 3.29 3.00 3.43 3.82
direct N 28 28 28 28 28 28
investment RII 0.636 0.522 0.658 0.6 0.686 0.764
Mean 2.91 2.62 3.02 2.74 3.19 3.23
Total N 47 47 47 47 47 47
RII 0.582 0.524 0.604 0.548 0.638 0.646

4.6.2 Infrastructure Issues

Infrastructures are required to properly undertake projects execution. Roads are needed to
be accessible for transportation of raw materials, machineries, and equipment. Similarly,
consistent supply of electric powers, water supply, and more facilities are highly required
for building and installation as well as for operation of projects. Accordingly, the data
collected from the questionnaire to analyze the response of respondents about the
infrastructure issues is presented as below.

Table 4.24: Analysis Result for Infrastructure Issues

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII

Project location has high access to road 47 1 5 3.23 0.646

There is high access to electric power 47 1 5 2.70 0.540

There is sufficient supply of water 47 1 5 3.11 0.622

Adequate and fast logistic systems are available 47 1 5 2.60 0.520

Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 2.91
Average RII of all variables 0.582

54
In the table 4.24 shown above, the project execution has faced the challenges with the
access to electric power and access of adequate logistic systems. The mean score for
these variables are 2.70 for high access to electric power and 2.6 for adequate logistic
systems which indicate they are relatively more challenging factors to undertake the
project in leather products investment projects when compared with other variables. In
general, the grand mean score is 2.91 and RII% is 58.2% that falls within the range of
moderate challenges.

Table 4.25: Comparison for Infrastructure Issues

Report
Ownership Project location There is high There is Adequate and
has high access to access to sufficient fast logistic
road electric power supply of water systems are
available
Mean 2.37 1.74 2.21 1.79
domestic
N 19 19 19 19
investment
RII 0.474 0.348 0.442 0.358
Mean 3.82 3.36 3.71 3.14
foreign direct
N 28 28 28 28
investment
RII 0.764 0.672 0.742 0.628
Mean 3.23 2.70 3.11 2.60
Total N 47 47 47 47
RII 0.646 0.540 0.622 0.52

To compare how differently domestic investment and FDI projects has experience the
infrastructure issues the mean scores of variables have been compared. Accordingly, all
variables for the domestic investment projects show very low mean values and RII values
compared to FDI. This indicates that domestic investment projects have been more
challenged with infrastructures than FDI projects did in LPMID projects execution.

4.6.3 Loan Issues

It is clear that that loan is at the core of any investment projects as a financial source. The
access to this financial source is another challenge in investment projects. In this study, in
the context of Ethiopian Leather products manufacturing investment projects the loan
issues have been analyzed from the responses of questionnaires and the analysis result is
presented below.

55
As shown in the table 4.26 below, the analysis result for assessing the loan issues as a
challenging factor is generated using descriptive statistics. The grand mean score and
RII% score (2.46 and 49.2%) clearly describes the loan issues fall within the category of
1.5 - 2.49 (mostly challenging). Therefore, the result indicates Loan issue is mostly
challenging external challenge in project execution of LPMID projects.

Table 4.26: Analysis Results for Loan Issues

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII

The bank loan is accessible from any bank 47 1 4 2.53 0.506

Interest rate/cost of borrowing is low 47 1 4 2.26 0.452

Bank collateral requirement is convenient 47 1 5 2.43 0.486

Loan repayment period is convenient 47 1 5 2.64 0.528

Quick disbursement of loan 47 1 5 2.43 0.486

Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 2.46
Average RII of all variables 0.492

To compare how differently domestic investment and FDI projects has experience the
loan issues the mean scores of variables have been compared. Accordingly, although
there is difference between the two, all variables for the domestic investment and FDI
projects show very low mean and RII values. This indicates that both the domestic
investment and FDI projects have been challenged with the loan issues in LPMID
investment projects execution.

56
Table 4.27: Comparison for Loan Issues

Report
Ownership The bank Interest Bank Loan Quick
loan is rate/cost of collateral repayment disburseme
accessible borrowing is requirement period is nt of loan
from any low is convenient
bank convenient

Mean 2.16 2.05 2.21 2.58 1.95

domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19 19
RII 0.432 0.41 0.442 0.516 0.39
Mean 2.79 2.39 2.57 2.68 2.75
foreign direct
investment N 28 28 28 28 28
RII 0.558 0.478 0.514 0.536 0.55
Mean 2.53 2.26 2.43 2.64 2.43
Total N 47 47 47 47 47
RII 0.506 0.452 0.486 0.528 0.486

4.6.4 Government Support

There are institutions established from the government side to support the growth of
investments and the sector. The integration among such institutions intertwined with
their institutional capacity and power is crucial for the success and sustainability of
investment projects. With this consideration, the extent to which the government support
is either facilitating or challenging the project execution has been analyzed and presented.

Table 4.28: Analysis Result for Government Support

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII

Government follow up of investment is supportive 47 1 5 3.02 0.604

Government response is quick for support requests 47 1 5 2.66 0.532

Government support is systematically integrated 47 1 4 2.47 0.494

Support institutions have adequate decision making

47 1 5 2.60 0.520
power
Gov't workers are cooperative 47 1 4 2.57 0.514

Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 2.66

Average RII of all variables 0.532

57
From the table 4.28 shown above, it can be easily understood there is insufficient
government support to facilitate and speed up project execution in LPMID investment
projects where the grand mean and RII% value of the issue is 2.66 and 53.2%
respectively, which is very close to 2.5 (i.e. RII% = 50% ) lower limit of moderately
challenging range. The least score is observed in a variable – government support is
systematically integrated – which has 2.47 mean score that falls within the range of 1.5 –
2.49 or mostly challenging category.

In the table 4.29 below, the domestic investment and FDI projects have been compared
based on their mean scores and RII to understand how differently they perceived the
government support. Thus, all variables for the domestic investment projects show very
low mean and RII scores; and all scores are also less than the scores of FDI with the
corresponding variables. This indicates that respondents from domestic investment
projects have perceived that government support is less sufficient and consequently
challenged their project performance when compared with FDI projects.

Table 4.29: Comparison for Government Support

Report

Ownership Government Government Government Support Gov't

follow up of response is support is institutions workers
investment quick for systematicall have adequate are
is supportive support y integrated decision cooperativ
requests making power e

Mean 2.79 2.26 2.05 2.21 2.32

domestic N 19 19 19 19 19
investment
0.558 0.452 0.41 0.442 0.464
RII

Mean 3.18 2.93 2.75 2.86 2.75

foreign direct N 28 28 28 28 28
investment 0.636 0.586 0.55 0.572 0.55
RII

Mean 3.02 2.66 2.47 2.60 2.57

Total N 47 47 47 47 47
0.604 0.532 0.494 0.52 0.514
RII

58
 4.6.5 Supply Issues
The supply issues as the challenges of project execution is identified and analyzed. The
result of the analysis is presented below.

Table 4.30: Analysis Result for Supply Issues

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII
Required Supplies of material are available in local
47 1 5 2.43 0.486
markets
Availably of adequate equipment supply in local
47 1 5 2.26 0.452
markets
Access of material and equipment from single market 47 1 3 1.96 0.392

Efforts and capacity of suppliers for quick supply 47 1 5 2.66 0.532

Suppliers are trusted in all aspects 47 1 5 2.66 0.532

Valid N (listwise) 47
Grand mean of all variables 2.39
Average RII of all variables 0.478
From the table 4.30 shown above, it is clearly indicated that from 5 variables only two
variables are within the range of 2.5 – 3.49 with much close value to lower limit of the
range and the remaining three variables are within the range of 1.5 – 2.49. The grand
mean value 2.39 or RII% value 47.8% clearly shows that it is in the category of mostly
challenging issue.

Table 4.31: Comparison for Supply Issues

Report

Ownership Required Availably of Access of Efforts and Suppliers are

Supplies of adequate material and capacity of trusted in all
material are equipment equipment suppliers for aspects
available in supply in from single quick supply
local markets local markets market

Mean 2.16 2.00 1.74 1.95 2.58

domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19 19
RII 0.432 0.4 0.348 0.39 0.516
Mean 2.61 2.43 2.11 3.14 2.71
foreign direct
investment N 28 28 28 28 28
RII 0.522 0.486 0.422 0.628 0.542
Mean 2.43 2.26 1.96 2.66 2.66
Total N 47 47 47 47 47
RII 0.486 0.452 0.392 0.532 0.532

59
Based on the results shown in the comparison table 4.31 above, every individual variable
mean and RII scores of domestic investment projects are less when compared with the
FDI projects. Even though all variables of both domestic investments and FDI show low
mean and RII score and the issue is mostly challenging for both as they exposed to the
same condition; it was more challenging for domestic investment projects than FDI
projects.

4.6.6 Issues Related to Contractors

The success of the projects execution also depends on experience and capability of the
contractor. Full understanding of the project requirements, sufficient experiences, and
cooperation with the project team are indispensable for the project success. Hence, the
contractor issues have been analyzed under this subtitle and the result is presented below.

Table 4.32: Analysis Results for Issues Related to Contractors

Descriptive Statistics
Variables N Minimum Maximum Mean RII
Contractors have sufficient project execution
47 1 4 2.77 0.554
experiences
Contractors have sufficient capacity 47 1 4 2.85 0.570

Contractors’ teams are cooperative during 0.596

47 2 5 2.98
project execution
Contractors’ effort is high to maintain the 0.634
47 2 5 3.17
project plan
Valid N (listwise) 47
2.94
Grand mean of all variables

Average RII of all variables 0.588

Based on the result shown in the table 4.32 above, the issues related to contractors is also
moderately challenging to the LPMID investment project execution as it is observable
from the table the grand mean value is 2.94 or RII% is 58.8%. So, due to the grand mean
value is in the category of 2.5 – 3.49 the issues related to contractor is also moderate
challenge for the success of project execution in investment projects of LPMID.

60
Table 4.33: Comparison for Issues Related to Contractors
Report

Ownership Contractors have Contractors Contractors’ teams Contractors’

sufficient project have sufficient are cooperative effort is high to
execution capacity during project maintain the
experiences execution project plan
Mean 2.37 2.26 2.74 3.00
domestic
investment N 19 19 19 19
RII 0.474 0.452 0.548 0.6
Mean 3.04 3.25 3.14 3.29
foreign direct
investment N 28 28 28 28
RII 0.608 0.65 0.628 0.658
Mean 2.77 2.85 2.98 3.17
Total N 47 47 47 47
RII 0.554 0.57 0.596 0.634

Here also, based on the results shown in the comparison table 4.33 above, every
individual variable the scores of domestic investment projects are less when compared
with the FDI projects regarding the contractor issues. Therefore, as per the analysis result
about the issues related to project contractors, domestic investment projects have
experienced more challenges than FDI projects in the project execution of LPMID
investment projects.

4.7 Prioritizing External Challenges

In the similar way to the prioritization of internal challenges, the table 4.34 shown below
was used to present the ranks of external challenges in order to prioritize the external
challenges for systematic approach of appropriate actions. Thus, the identified challenges
for assessment of external challenges have been prioritized based on their mean and RII
scores in the same way with that was presented in previous sections of 4.5. The overall
scores of mean and RII were used as cutting values to consider highly challenging
external issues. Thus, overall mean = 2.71 or RII% = 54.2% was used as cutting value.

Therefore, as illustrated in the table, the most top external challenges of project execution
that have grand mean values less than Overall mean of external challenge (i.e. 2.71) or
external challenges with average RII scores less than overall RII of external challenges

61
(i.e. 0.542) in the LPMID investment projects are: supply issues; loan issues; and
government support.

Table 4.34: Results for Prioritizing External Challenges

S. Grand RII Rank in
No mean score Ascending
External Challenges score Order
Government Regulations and system 0.580
1. Issues 2.9 4
0.582
2. Infrastructure Issues 2.91 5
0.492
3. Loan Issues 2.46 2
0.532
4. Government Support 2.66 3
0.478
5. Supply Issues 2.39 1
0.588
6. Issues Related to Contractors 2.94 6
OVERALL MEAN and RII Scores of
External Challenges 2.71 0.542

The individual variables in each identified challenges group were also prioritized to
systematically address the challenges and enhance the project performance during the
project execution of LPMID investment projects. Accordingly, the variables that showed
mean and RII scores less than 2.71 and 0.542 respectively have been considered and
prioritized in the ascending order.

The following table 4.35 shows the prioritized external challenges variables based on RII
cutting score. Thus, variables those have RII scores less than 0.542 or 54.2% (the overall
RII score of external challenges) are ranked in ascending order.

62
Table 4.35: Result for Prioritizing External Challenges Variables with mean value score less
than 2.71

S. No. Rank in
External Challenges Variables with mean value score less Ascending
than 2.71 or RII 0.542 RII Order of RII
score score
1. 0.392
Access of material and equipment from single market 1
2. 0.452
Interest rate/cost of borrowing is low 2
3. 0.452
Availably of adequate equipment supply in local markets 2
4. 0.486
Bank collateral requirement is convenient 4
5. 0.486
Quick disbursement of loan 4
6. 0.486
Required Supplies of material are available in local markets 4
7. 0.494
Government support is systematically integrated 7
8. 0.506
The bank loan is accessible from any bank 8
9. 0.514
Gov't workers are cooperative 9
10. 0.520
Adequate and fast logistic systems are available 10
11. 0.520
Support institutions have adequate decision making power 10
12. 0.528
Loan repayment period is convenient 12
13. 0.532
Government response is quick for support requests 13
14. 0.532
Efforts and capacity of suppliers for quick supply 13
15. 0.532
Suppliers are trusted in all aspects 13
16. 0.540
There is high access to electric power 16

63
 CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Introduction
Under this chapter, the final summary, conclusions, and recommendations are presented.
Here the brief summary is provided based on the detail descriptions of results and
discussion presented in chapter four. Depending on the results and discussions the
relevant conclusions have been drawn and essential recommendations have been
provided.

5.2 Summary
To assess the challenges of project execution in investment projects of leather products
manufacturing industry the data was collected from 3 FDI projects and 4 domestic
investment projects from 47 total respondents. The questionnaire was used to collect the
primary data from participants. The questionnaires directly asked for the assessments of
internal and external challenges were asked to be answered with five pint Likert scale
from 1 – 5 that designates the scale between strongly disagree-to-strongly agree. The
collected data have been analyzed using descriptive statics on SPSS and the results have
been presented using graphs and tables in a manner that enable to answer the research
questions and achieve the research objectives. The results of the analysis are discussed
based on frequencies and mean values of Likert sclales. The mean values are discussed
using the categories of 1.0 – 1.49 = Completely Challenging, 1.5 – 2.49 = Mostly
Challenging, 2.5 – 3.49 = Moderately Challenging, 3.5 – 4.49 = Slightly Challenging,
and 4.5 – 5.00 = Not Challenging at All. Also, relative importance indexes (RII) have
been calculated for all variables and challenge groups so that the challenges have been
ranked based on mean and RII scores.

The following points are summary of internal challenges of project execution:

 The grand mean value of all variables is calculated 3.20 and RII is calculated 64%
for availability of clear project plan. This indicates that the project under
assessment have been moderately challenged by availability of clear project plans.

64
 The grand mean score of people readiness/project staffing/ calculated 3.06 and its
RII% is 61.2%. Based on the categories of mean, it indicates the project staffing
or people readiness for project execution in the LPMID investment project is
moderate challenge during project execution.
 Internal financial capacity (equity) of the project and their accounting procedures
show the mean values between 2.5 – 3.49 with the overall mean of the internal
financial resource analysis 3.02 and RII% 60.4%. The result lies between the
categories 2.5 – 3.49; so, project execution is moderately challenged by internal
financial capability of companies.
 Availability of physical resources has grand mean score of 3.13 and RII% 62.6%
that shows respondents moderately agree that the project execution has been
challenged by availability physical resources. Therefore, the physical resource of
the project undertaking companies was moderate challenge for the success of
project execution.
 The mean value of the practical project execution capability has 3.05 and RII%
score is 61%. The result falls between the categories 2.5 – 3.49; so, practical
project execution capability is moderately challenging during the project
execution in leather products manufacturing investment projects.
 The grand mean value for the client support shows 3.3 and average RII% shows
66% which has better score to the other mean values. Even though it lies in the
range of moderate challenges (2.5 – 3.49), this result indicates there is relatively
better performance for client support than other variables analyzed as internal
challenges
 The most top internal challenges that have mean scores and RII scores less than
overall internal challenge mean and RII% (i.e. 3.13 and 62.6% respectively) in
project execution of the LPMID investment projects are: internal financial
resources; practical project execution capability; and people readiness/project
staffing/.
 Based on the comparison of analysis results, having clear and complete project
plan, people readiness/project staffing/, internal financial resources, availability of
physical resources, practical project execution capability, and stakeholders

65
 support are more challenging factors for domestic investment projects than FDI
projects.

The following points are summary of external challenges of project execution:

 The grand mean and RII% value for government regulation and system issues are
2.90 and 58% respectively that is between 2.5 - 3.49. Based on this result, the
current government regulation and systems with respect to investment projects
can be considered as a moderately challenging factor for leather products industry
development projects.
 The grand mean and average RII% score of loan issues are 2.46 and 49.2% which
clearly describe the loan issues fall within the category of 1.5 - 2.49 (mostly
challenging). Therefore, the result indicates Loan issue is mostly challenging
external challenge in project execution of leather products investment projects.
 The infrastructure has shown grand mean and average RII% score of 2.91 and
58.2% that falls within the range of moderate challenges.
 The grand mean value and average RII% score of the government supports issue
is 2.66 and 53.2% which is very close to 2.5 or 50% lower limit of moderately
challenging range.
 The supply issues showed grand mean value of 2.39 or 47.8% RII% that clearly
indicates it is in the category of mostly challenging issue.
 The issues related to contractors is also moderately challenging to the project
execution as it is observable from the grand mean value is 2.94 or 58.8% RII%.
 The most top external challenges of project execution that have grand mean
values and RII% less than Overall mean and RII% of external challenge (i.e. 2.71
and 58.8%) in the LPMID investment projects are: supply issues; loan issues; and
government support.
 Based on the comparison of results, Government Regulations and system Issues;
Infrastructure Issues; Loan issues; Government supports; and supply issues; and
issues related to contractors are more challenging factors for domestic investment
projects than FDI projects.

66
 5.3 Conclusion
Manufacturing industry investment projects are among different sector projects that are
given high attention by developing countries to exploit their resources and become
competitive in the world market. Investment projects in leather products manufacturing
industry sector are the means of pulling the development of the leather industry in general
to exploit the comparative advantages the country possesses. But, the investment projects
in leather products manufacturing have experienced schedule slippages and cost overruns
due to complex and interlinked challenges that have been influencing the performance of
investment projects. Hence, the objective of this study was to assess the main internal and
external challenges of project execution in investment projects of Ethiopian leather
products industry development that have been affecting the overall performances of
investment projects.

Based on the assessment results of internal challenges that have been identified as
negatively affecting the performance of project execution, the first top three internal
challenges of project execution in the leather products manufacturing investment projects
are: internal financial resources; practical project execution capability; and people
readiness (project staffing).

Similarly, Based on the assessment results of external challenges that have been
identified as negatively affecting the performance of project execution, the first top three
external challenges of project execution in the leather products manufacturing investment
projects are: supply issues; loan issues; and government support issues.

Finally, by making a comparison between the results of internal and external challenges
based on the overall mean and RII score, the overall mean and RII score of internal
challenge are 3.13 and 0.626 respectively; the overall mean and RII score of external
challenges are 2.71 and 0.542 respectively. Therefore, the success of project execution in
Ethiopian leather products manufacturing industry development projects have been
challenged by external challenges than internal challenges within the project undertaking
companies.

67
 5.4 Recommendations
Based on the results presented in the above sections, the following recommendations
have been given to attract the attention of internal project executing parties and external
parties concerned with the investment project in order to increase the project performance
during the project execution of leather products manufacturing investment projects.

It would be better for internal project executing parties to concentrate on more

challenging internal issues in the sequence of priority given based on the analysis result.
Accordingly it is better to put more effort in overcoming internal challenges through:

1. Increasing the capacity of internal financial resources before starting the project
execution;
2. Increasing the practical project execution capability by recruiting a project
manager with leadership skills, managing financial expenditures, designing
effective ways of utilization of physical resources, proactive follow up project
risks plans, continuously monitoring and evaluation of project performances and
managing changes, updating the project plan, effective communication of
progresses with stakeholders, and frequently documenting lessons learned;
3. Giving proper emphasis to people readiness (project staffing) by recruiting
competent project manager and project team along with clarified expectations,
responsibilities, and authorities.

Similarly, it would be better for external investment project concerned parties to

concentrate on more challenging external issues in the sequence of priority given based
on the analysis result. So, it is better to put more effort on the first top three external
challenges of project execution.

1. Supply issues: It would be better for the companies to prepare a realistic

procurement plan by considering all the risks related to the issue of supply chain
logistics.
2. Loan issues: It is highly recommended to for banks to revise their procedures of
access to the bank loan, interest rate/cost of borrowing, collateral requirements,
loan repayment period, and quick processing of loan application.

68
 3. Government support issues: It is recommended that the government support need
to be improved by proper follow up of investment projects, quick response for
support requests from, systematically integrating the support of multiple
institutions, and providing adequate decision making power supporting
institutions.

Finally, the recommendation may also be extended to other researchers to undertake

further researches in other manufacturing industry projects so that the results can be
recommended for other related and similar investment projects.

69
References

Adugna, H., (2013). Determinants of Private Investment in Ethiopia, Journal of

Economics and Sustainable Development, 4(20), PP. 192.

Akogbe R., Feng X., Zhou J., (2013). Importance and ranking evaluation of delay factors
for development construction projects in Benin. 17(6), pp. 1213–1222

Aziz R., 2013. Ranking of delay factors in construction projects after Egyptian
revolution. Alexandria Engineering Journal, 52(3), 387 – 406.

Bartels, L., Alladina N., & Lederer S., (2015). Foreign Direct Investment in Sub-Saharan
Africa: Motivating Factors and Policy Issues, Journal of African Business, pp.
141–162.

Bekele, M. and Ayele, G. (2008). The Leather Sector: Growth Strategies through
Integrated Value Chain, Ethiopian Development Research Institute, [Online], pp.
17, Available at: http:/www.edri.org.et Accessed April 1, 2019].

Bolles, D., (2002). Building project management centers of excellence. New York:
American Management Association, pp. 106.

Brautigam, D., Farole, T., and Xiaoyang, T. (2010). China‘s Investment in African
Special Economic Zones: Prospects, Challenges, and Opportunities, Economic
Premise, 5(53682), PP. 1 – 2.

Brautigam, D., Weis, T., and Xiaoyang, T. (2010). Latent advantage, complex
challenges: Industrial policy and Chinese linkages in Ethiopia's leather sector,
China Economic Review, (48), PP. 158 – 169.

Chan, C., Scott, D. and Chan, L., (2004). Factors Affecting the Success of a Construction
Project, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 130(1), pp. 153 –
155.

Doloi H., Sawhney A., Iyer K., Rentala S., (2012). International Journal of Project
Management. 30(4), pp. 479-489

Dupasquier, C. and Osakwe, N., (2005). Foreign direct investment in Africa:

Performance, challenges, and responsibilities, Journal of Asian Economics, pp.
241–260.

Eshetie, T., (2018). Ethiopia‘s Manufacturing Industry Opportunities, Challenges and

Way Forward: A Sectoral Overview, New Techniques in Nutrition and Food
Science, 2(2), pp. 1 – 6.

70
Fitsum , A., Abdi, A., Abduletif, H., (2018). A Project Progress of Leather Products
industry. Unpublished report, Leather Industry Development Institute.

Giannecchini, P. and Taylor, I. (2018). The Eastern Industrial Zone in Ethiopia: Catalyst
for Development?, Geoforum, (88), pp. 30 – 33.

Heagney, J.., (2012). Fundamentals of Project Management. 4th edition. New York:
American Management Association, pp. 18-19.

Jeffrey K., Pinto and Dennis P., Slevin, (1987). Critical Factors In Successful
ProjectImplementation IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management. 34(1),
pp. 24 -26.

Kerzner, H., (2009). Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling,

and Controlling10th edition. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., pp. 60 – 364.

Kerzner, H., (2011). Project Management Metrics, KPIs, and Dashboards page: A Guide
to Measuring and Monitoring Project Performance. New Jersey: John Wiley &
Sons, Inc., pp. 57 – 143.

Kothari, C., (2004). Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques. 2nd edition. New
Delhi: New edge international publishers, pp. 02 – 96.

Lutchman, C., (2011). Project execution: a practical approach to industrial and

commercial project management. Boca Raton: Taylor and Francis Group, PP. 7 –
8.

Mahianyu, J., Njeru, A., (2016). Factors Influencing Project Implementation in the
Department Of Public Health in Kiambu County. Strategic journal of business and
change management, 3(68), pp. 1298 – 1298.

Marczyk, G., DeMatteo, D., Festinger, D., (2005). Essentials of Research Design and
Methodology. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons,Inc., pp. 106.

Menon, A., (2015). Best Practices and Implementation Challenges in Effective Project
Management, [online], pp. 12, Available at:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/276059340_Best_Practices_and_Imple
mentation_Challenges_in_Effective_Project_Management Accessed May
9, 2019].

Mochal, T., and Mochal, J., (2011). Lessons in Project Management. 2nd edition, New
York: Springer, pp. 6 – 167.

71
Mulat A. (2015). Revealed Comparative Advantage of Ethiopian Leather Industry with
Selected African Economies, International Journal of Business and Economics
Research, 4(5), pp.230.

Olima W., and Akumu O., (1999). The problems of project implementation: a post-
mortem study of Thika dam project, Kenya. Habitat int., 23(4), pp. 467 – 479.

Patil, G., (2016). Project Management Challenges, Journal of Multidisciplinary

Engineering Science and Technology, 3(11), pp. 6020.

Phillips, J., Brantley, W., and Phillips, P., (2012). Management ROI: A Step-by-Step
Guide for Measuring the Impact and ROI for Projects. New Jersey: John Wiley &
Sons, Inc., pp. 4 – 22.

PMBOK® Guide, (2013). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge. 5th
Edition, Project Management Institute. pp. 5 – 56.

Richman, L., (2011). Successful Project Management. 3rd edition, New York: American
Management Association, pp. 2.

Rondinelli, D. A. (1976). Why development projects fail: problems of project

management in developing countries. Project Management Quarterly, 7(1), 10–
15.

Signe, L., (2018). The potential of manufacturing and industrialization in Africa: Trends,
opportunities, and strategies, Africa Growth Initiative, pp. 22 – 23.

Sonobe, T., John, E., and Otsuka , K., (2009). An Exploration into the Successful
Development of the Leather-Shoe Industry in Ethiopia, Review of Development
Economics, 13(4), pp. 720.

Tonnquist, B., (2009). Project Management: A Complete Guide. Denmark: Academica,

pp. 175 – 197.

UNDP, (2017). Understanding African experiences in formulating and implementing

plans for emergence: Growing Manufacturing Industry in Ethiopia, pp. 43.

Williams, M., (2008). The Principles of Project Management. Canada: SitePoint Pty.
Ltd., pp. 9 – 188.

Wysoki, K., (2004). Project Management Process Improvement. Norwood: Artech house,
inc., pp.145 – 146.

Wysoki, K., (2014). Effective Project Management: Traditional, Agile, Extreme. 7th
Edition. Indiana: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., pp. 144 – 145.

72
 Annex

Questionnaire
Addis Ababa University School of Commerce
Department of Project Management
Post Graduate Program

Dear Participant,

My name is Melkamu Meseret and I am a graduate student at Addis Ababa University School of
Commerce. For my final project, I am studying on title “The assessment on the challenges of
project execution in investment projects of Ethiopian leather products industry development”.
Because you are part of this project, I am inviting you to participate in this research study by
completing the attached surveys. The following questionnaire will require approximately 20
minutes to complete, please answer all questions as honestly as possible and return the completed
questionnaires promptly. The information you provide is very essential element for my research
and they will be treated strictly confidential.

Thank you for taking the time to assist me in my educational endeavors.

General instruction and information: Part I contains questions about general demographic
characteristics of the respondents and part II contains questions that are related to the research
objectives. Please attempt to answer all the questions.

Part I: General Questions about Respondents

Please “thick” in the box for your answer from the alternatives.
S. No. Question Choices
1. Gender Male Female
2. Age < 18 18 -25 26 – 35 36 – 45 46 – 55 56 – 65 > 65

3. Level of High school Diploma 1st Degree 2nd Degree and Above
education
4. Your Client/Owner Project Project Project team member Consultant Other:
Role Sponsor Manager __________

73
 Part II: Questions about the Project
General Information about the project:
Please encircle/underline your answer from the alternatives.
1. What is the form of business of the investment project?
(1) Partnership (2) Private Limited Company (PLC) (3) Share Company (S. Co.)

(5) Corporate (6) State Owned Company

2. What is the type ownership of investment?

(1) Domestic Investment (2) Foreign Direct Investment
3. What is the type of investment project? (1) New Project (2) Expansion project
4. In which leather product category is the investment engaged? (More than one option can
be selected).
(1) Footwear (2) Leather Goods (3) Leather garment (4) Leather Glove
5. In which year did the project start?
(1) Before 2014 (2) 2014 (3) 2015 (4) 2016 (5) 2017 (6) 2018
6. In which stage does the project currently exist?
(1) Readiness/preparation for execution (2) Under construction (3) Under Installation
(4) Operational

Internal Challenges of Project Execution: For each question Please mark “X” on your
desirable answer. (Please see the description below for your choice).

Description 1 = Strongly Disagree 2 = Disagree 3 = Neutral 4 = Agree 5 = Strongly Agree

S. No. Questions 1 2 3 4 5
1. Availability of Clear Project Plan
1.1. The Project scope is clear.
1.2. Clear project time schedule is available.
1.3. Clear project cost plan is available.
1.4. Clear project quality plan is documented.
1.5. Clear project risk management plan is in place.
1.6. Clear Project communication plan is in place.
1.7. Clear Project HR plan is available.
1.8. Clear project procurement management plan is in place.

74
S. No. Questions 1 2 3 4 5
2 People Readiness/project staffing/
2.1. Project manager is hired on time and properly oriented.
2.2. Project manager has sufficient work experiences.
2.3. Project Manager has appropriate project management
competencies.
2.4. Project teams are hired on schedule for project execution.
2.5. All personnel are properly trained, assessed and qualified.
2.6. Project team are committed, focused, and matured.
2.7. Expectations, responsibilities, and authorities are clarified for the
workforces.
3 Financial Resources
3.1 Internal financial capacity (equity) of the project is high.
3.2 All required finances are supplied for project staffing, site
preparation, building material procurement, and equipment
procurement on schedule.
3.3 Project budgets are properly estimated during estimation.
3.4 Adequate accounting procedures and practices are available for
control and appropriate measures to ensure adequate control.
4 Physical Resources
4.1 Site preparation is completed on schedule.
4.2 Essential building materials are acquired on schedule.
4.3 Essential building machineries are procured on schedule.
4.4 Essential equipment are acquired on schedule.
5 Practical Execution Capability
5.1 Project manager follow up project staffs and enhances labor
productivity of Project team with efficient leadership skills.
5.2 Conflicts are properly managed among the workforces.
5.3 Project manager properly tracks project‘s financial expenditures.
5.4 Project manager and team track effective and efficient utilization
of physical resources.
5.5 Project manager and team proactively follow up project risks
plans.

75
S. No. Questions 1 2 3 4 5
5.6 Project manager continuously tracks project performances and
manage changes.
5.7 Project manager reviews and updates the project plan.
5.8 Project manager maintains continuous communication with
stakeholders.
5.9 Project team effort is high to maintain the planned project
schedule, time, and quality.
5.10 Project Manager frequently documents lessons learned.
6 Stakeholder (Client) Support
6.1 The project is highly aligned with the strategies of the company.
6.2 Clients‘ interest to project outcome is high.
6.3 Clients are committed and provide ideas for successful
completion of project.
6.4 Clients frequently ask changes request.
6.5 Project sponsors provide finances as per the schedule.
6.6 Stakeholders usually give feedback for project progress reports
and updated plans.

Please share us additional internal challenges you faced while project execution/implementation.

______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

External Challenges of Project Execution: For each question Please mark “X” on your
desirable answer. (Please see the description below for your choice).

Description 1 = Strongly Disagree 2 = Disagree 3 = Neutral 4 = Agree 5 = Strongly Agree

S. No. Questions 1 2 3 4 5
1. Government Regulations and system Issues
1.1. Investment licensing process is easy.

76
S. No. Questions 1 2 3 4 5
1.2. Government regulations are convenient to access investment land.
1.3. Government Investment schemes are motivating for investment
project.
1.4. The working system of government is transparent and fair.
1.5. Government system does not discriminate or favor domestic and
foreign direct investments.
2. Infrastructure Issues
2.1 Project location has high access to road.
2.2 There is high access to electric power.
2.3 There is sufficient supply of water.
2.4 Adequate and fast logistic systems are available for procurement.
3. Loan
3.1 The bank loan is accessible from any bank (private or state owned).
3.2 Interest rate/cost of borrowing is low.
3.3 Bank collateral requirement is convenient.
3.4 Loan repayment period is convenient.
3.5 Quick disbursement of loan (quick processing of loan application).
4. Government Support
4.1 Government follow up of investment is supportive for effective
completion of projects.
4.2 Government response is quick for support requests.
4.3 Government support is systematically integrated.
4.4 Support institutions have adequate decision making power.
4.5 Government workers are cooperative.
3. Supply Issues
3.1. Required Supplies of material are available in local markets.
3.2. Adequate Supplies of equipment are available in local markets.
3.3. Supplies of material and equipment can be easily accessed from
single market.
3.4. Suppliers make high efforts and have capacity of quick supply.
3.5. Suppliers are trusted in all aspects.
4. Contractors

77
S. No. Questions 1 2 3 4 5
4.1. Contractors have sufficient project execution experiences.
4.2. Contractors have sufficient capacity.
4.3. Contractors‘ teams are cooperative during project execution.
4.4. Contractors‘ effort is high to maintain the planned project schedule,
time, and quality.

Please share us additional external challenges you faced while project execution/implementation.

______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________

*****Thank You for Your Cooperation*****

78