Ghana Building Code to ensure value for money, safety – Bawumia

• Posted on October 31, 2018
• by Ellsamwise King
• Comment

Vice President, Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia, has said the new Ghana Building Code will bring an end to the situation where the cost of public building projects are inflated by contractors.

He also believes the code when fully implemented, will protect the citizenry against accidents caused by the poor construction of infrastructure in the country.

The Ghana Building Code is an over 1,600-page document aimed at sanitizing the building sector and ensuring that best practices are adhered to.

Speaking at the launch of the code on Wednesday, Dr. Bawumia said the code will help check such abuses in the construction sector.

“Once the specifications of buildings are in accordance with the standards specified in the Ghana Building Code and the construction materials utilized are specified, it should be possible to have fairly accurate costs for all types of construction in the country.”

“This is definitely expected to help us achieve value for money. Sometimes there are buildings of the same kind but with different costs. But if the codes are specified, then we know that we can get to the costing very easily”, he stressed.

Building code to ensure safety

Dr. Bawumia also mentioned that the code, when finally passed will ensure that Ghanaians are relieved from instances where they are affected by the collapse of buildings due to non-standardized works.

“Ghana’s building code will make Ghana safer because safety is very important. With the launching of the code and the passage of the necessary legislation, we can provide relief to the people of Ghana from the collapse of buildings as well as ensuring the safety of private, public and industrial buildings.”

The Ghana Building Code

The Ghana Standards Authority (GSA), developed the Building Code together with stakeholders within the sector.

It will also ensure uniformity in the construction industry by providing building professionals, developers and investors with common standards for public health, safety, fire protection, structural efficiency and environmental integrity.

The Minister for Works and Housing, Atta Akyea, said the country “will see a major paradigm shift in the built environment because of the fact that we want to introduce sanity into the system.”