AN EMPIRICAL FRAMEWORK OF CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR PUBLIC CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS IN TANZANIA: THE MODERATING ROLE OF THE PROJECT’S EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJIREV.825018Keywords:
Critical Success Factors, Project External Environment, Public Construction Projects, TanzaniaAbstract
Public construction projects in Tanzania continue to face recurrent issues, including cost overruns of 25–61% and delays of up to 48 months. Despite being essential to the nation's growth, these projects continue to face these challenges. These challenges highlighted systemic flaws in planning, procurement, cash flow management, and stakeholder coordination. Although critical success factors (CSFs) have been the subject of research worldwide, Tanzania lacks an empirically validated framework that integrates internal project capabilities with external environmental variables. By identifying, ranking, and testing critical success factors (CSFs) in Tanzanian public construction projects and by investigating the moderating effect of the Project External Environment (PEE), this study addresses the identified gap. This research analyzes five CSF categories: Risk management, Project Planning and Management, Project Stakeholders, Project Procurement and Supply, and PEE. The research is guided by Resource-Based Theory and Stakeholder Theory. A quantitative cross-section survey design was adopted, using structured questionnaires administered to 200 professionals involved in public construction projects in Tanzania, yielding 165 valid responses from project managers, engineers, contractors, and government supervisors. Data were analyzed using SPSS through reliability tests, descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, multiple regression, and moderation analysis. The findings revealed that CSFs had a significant positive influence on project success, with management support, effective planning, and stakeholder coordination emerging as the strongest predictors. The results further showed that the external environment significantly moderated the relationship between CSFs and project success, indicating that favourable political, economic, regulatory, technological, and social conditions strengthened project outcomes, while adverse conditions weakened them. The findings offer practitioners and policymakers insights that may be put into action, with a particular emphasis on effective resource allocation, stakeholder involvement, risk management, and adaptive planning. Within Tanzania's construction industry, the framework provided is a useful tool that may increase efficiency, reduce waste, and enhance the implementation of sustainable project outcomes.
Downloads
References
Abal-Seqan, M. H., Pokharel, S., & Naji, K. K. (2023). Key Success Factors and Their Impact://doi.org/10.3390/su15043700on the Performance of Construction Projects: Case in Qatar. Sustainability (Switzerland), 15(4). https
Abdallah, A., Doloi, H., & Holzer, D. (2025). Exploring contextual issues impacting the delivery and performance of public sector construction projects in Tanzania. Built Environment Project and Asset Management, 15(2), 228–246. https://doi.org/10.1108/BEPAM-03-2024-0068
Amoah, A., Berbegal-Mirabent, J., & Marimon, F. (2021). Making the Management of a Project Successful: Case of Construction Projects in Developing Countries. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 147(12). https://doi.org/10.1061/(asce)co.1943-7862.0002196
Blaskovics, B., Klimkó, G. G., & Maró, Z. M. (2026). Critical success factors in project management: Lessons for sustaining competitiveness. Social Sciences and Humanities Open, 13(December 2025). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.102338
Bombo, F. B. (2025). Unpacking Delay Factors in Government Construction Projects in Tanzania : Insights From Audit Evidence and Empirical Literature. 12(5), 895–905.
CAG. (2019). Taarifa kuu ya mwaka ya mdhibiti na mkaguzi mkuu wa hesabu za serikali ukaguzi wa miradi ya maendeleo kwa mwaka wa fedha ulioishia tarehe 30 juni 2019.
Cooper, V. A. (2008). The Critical Success Factor Method: a review and parctical example. International Conference on Information Resources Management (CONF-IRM), 53(2), 1–11. http://aisel.aisnet.org/confirm2008/53
Diogo, B. B., Carlos, A. P. S., Najjar, M., Costa, B. B. F. d., Tam, V. W. Y. Y., & Haddad, A. N. (2024). Project success and critical success factors of construction projects from the perspective of a multicultural team: a case study in Guyana. International Journal of Construction Management, 25(10), 1115–1129. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2024.2397626
Hussain, A., Jamil, M., Farooq, M. U., Asim, M., Rafique, M. Z., & Pruncu, C. I. (2021). Project managers’ personality and project success: Moderating role of external environmental factors. Sustainability (Switzerland), 13(16). https://doi.org/10.3390/su13169477
Israel, B. (2023). The impact of clients’ procurement challenges on the substance goals of roads construction projects in Songwe, Tanzania. International Journal of Construction Management, 23(12), 2144–2150. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2022.2045861
Kabue, J. M., Gakuu, C., Harriet, K., & Mwangi, A. (2025). Moderating effect of project size on the relationship between risk management and project performance of county-funded construction projects. International Journal of Professional Business Review, 10(3), 01–22. https://doi.org/10.1108/ECAM-11-2021-1035
Killo, O., & Rwela, A. G. (2024). Examining factors influencing delay of construction projects in Tanzania: A case of Gerenzani- Mbagala BRT road. NG Journal of Social Development, 13(1), 148–160. https://doi.org/10.4314/ngjsd.v13i1.10
Kumar, V., Pandey, A., & Singh, R. (2023a). Critical Success Factor Models for Project Success. Journal of Engineering, Project, and Production Management, 13(2), 148–158. https://doi.org/10.32738/JEPPM-2023-0015
Kumar, V., Pandey, A., & Singh, R. (2023b). Project success and critical success factors of construction projects: Project practitioners’ perspectives. Organization, Technology and Management in Construction, 15(1), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.2478/otmcj-2023-0001
Lisinge, R. T., & van Dijk, M. P. (2022). Regional transport infrastructure programmes in Africa: what factors influence their performance? Canadian Journal of African Studies, 56(1), 99–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/00083968.2021.1896369
Marouani, A. M., Youssef, J., & Zaki, C. (2023). Policy Determinants of Structural Change in Developing Countries. 3rd Annual Conference of the Regional Research Network of the Central Banks of MENA.
Naji, K. K., Gunduz, M., & Adalbi, M. (2023). Analysis of Critical Project Success Factors—Sustainable Management of the Fast-Track Construction Industry. Buildings, 13(11), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings13112890
Prabhakar, G. P. (2008). What is Project Success : A Literature Review. International Journal of Business and Management, 39, 3–10.
Sarvari, H., Chan, D. W. M. M., Alaeos, A. K. F., Olawumi, T. O., Abdalridah Aldaud, A. A., Khalid, A., Alaeos, F., & Olawumi, T. O. (2021). Critical success factors for managing construction small and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries of Middle East: Evidence from Iranian construction enterprises. Journal of Building Engineering, 43(July), 103152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2021.103152
Sekaran, U., & Bougie, R. (2016). Research Methods for Business: A Skill-Building Approach. www.wileypluslearningspace.com
Valentine, G. M., Phoya, S., Dennis, N. G., & Lyimo, K. S. (2018). CRITICAL FACTORS CAUSING DELAY AND COST OVERRUN IN PUBLIC BUILDING PROJECTS IN DAR-ES-SALAAM, TANZANIA. PARIPEX - Indian Journal of Research, 1(7), 11–16.
Wang, T., Xu, J., He, Q., Chan, A. P. C., & Owusu, E. K. (2023). Studies on the success criteria and critical success factors for mega infrastructure construction projects: a literature review. In Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management (Vol. 30, Issue 5, pp. 1809–1834). Emerald Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1108/ECAM-12-2020-1042
