ARCOM

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Addy, M N, Adinyira, E, Dadzoe, F and Opoku, D (2022) The market for green buildings in Sub-Saharan Africa: Experts’ perspective on the economic benefits in Ghana. Journal of Construction in Developing Countries, 27(1), 173-88.

• Type: Journal Article
• Keywords: market; real estate; sustainability; green building; investment; productivity; client; consultant; owner; stakeholders; Ghana; quantitative research; questionnaire survey
• ISBN/ISSN:
• URL: https://doi.org/10.21315/jcdc2022.27.1.10
• Abstract:
  Part of the ideals of promoting sustainability is the green building (GB) concept. Nevertheless, the uptake and use of GBs amongst most stakeholders in Africa are still on the low. Despite the plethora of studies on the economic benefits of green building, there is a dearth in studying the benefits in Africa. Within these economies, the presence of market restrictions, socio-cultural and political factors may mitigate against these benefits. This study seeks to unearth the economic benefits of GBs within the context of a sub-Saharan African country, Ghana. By adopting a quantitative research approach, a comprehensive literature review was first conducted. This was followed by the use of a questionnaire survey. A structured questionnaire was issued to building consultants in Ghana to elicit their perspectives on the economic gains of GBs. Mean scores, Wilcoxon signed-rank test and Kruskal-Wallis H test were respectively used to rank and assess the level of agreements amongst the various consultants on the economic benefits. Five economic benefits were identified from the study. This includes savings in energy, lower lifetime cost, lower operational cost, increased work productivity and "transforms the construction industry". The findings show that most of the economic benefits identified from literature cannot be realised in the study region, including "high return on investment" and "increase in building value". Consequently, building energy cost seems to play a crucial role in pushing the demand for the GB within the study milieu. The study provides a contextual understanding of economic benefits, useful to construction clients, property owners, real estate investors, consultants and the research environment. The findings are useful in providing market enablers to enhance a large-scale uptake of green construction. It is recommended that the provision of GBs should not be limited to only its impact on the environment and sustainability but also affordability concerns. This study provides a unique contextual perspective on the economic benefit of GB in a sub-Saharan African country.

Agyekum, K, Blay, K and Opoku, A (2019) Mechanisms for preventing rising damp in new building infrastructure. International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, 37(01), 87–107.

Akotia, J, Manu, E, Opoku, A and Sackey, E (2020) The role of built environment practitioners in driving the socio-economic sustainability aspects of sustainable regeneration. Construction Economics and Building, 20(02), 89-108.

Akotia, J, Opoku, A, Egbu, C and Fortune, C (2016) Exploring the knowledge ‘base’ of practitioners in the delivery of sustainable regeneration projects . Construction Economics and Building, 16(02), 14-26.

Blay, K, Agyekum, K and Opoku, A (2019) Actions, attitudes and beliefs of occupants in managing dampness in buildings. International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, 37(01), 42–53.

Gade, A N and Opoku, A (2020) Challenges for Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals in the Danish Construction Industry: Building Owners' Perspective. In: Scott, L and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 36th Annual ARCOM Conference, 7-8 September 2020, UK, Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 615-624.

Kavishe, N, Sunday, N, Magembe-Mushi, D L and Opoku, A (2022) Challenges Confronting Environmental Impact Assessment Practices in Tanzania: Construction Industry Professionals’ Perspective. In: Tutesigensi, A and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 38th Annual ARCOM Conference, 5-7 September 2022, Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow, UK. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 662-671.

Opoku, A (2016) SDG2030: A Sustainable Built Environment's Role in Achieving the Post-2015 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals . In: Chan, P W and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 32nd Annual ARCOM Conference, 5-7 September 2016, Manchester UK. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 1101–1110.

Opoku, A and Ahmed, V (2014) Embracing sustainability practices in UK construction organizations: Challenges facing intra-organizational leadership. Built Environment Project and Asset Management, 4(01), 90-107.

Opoku, A and Egbu, C (2018) Students' perspectives on the relevance of sustainability literacy in a postgraduate built environment program. International Journal of Construction Education and Research, 14(01), 46-58.

Opoku, A and Fortune, C (2010) Promoting organizational learning and project sustainability in the construction industry. In: Egbu, C (Ed.), Proceedings 26th Annual ARCOM Conference, 6-8 September 2010, Leeds, UK. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, Vol. 2, 957–66.

Opoku, A and Fortune, C (2011) The implementation of sustainable practices through leadership in construction organizations. In: Egbu, C and Lou, E C W (Eds.), Proceedings 27th Annual ARCOM Conference, 5-7 September 2011, Bristol, UK. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 1145–54.

Opoku, A and Ibrahim-Adam, R (2018) Early Contractor Involvement in Government Construction Projects in Ghana. In: Gorse, C and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 34th Annual ARCOM Conference, 3-5 September 2018, Queen’s University, Belfast, UK. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 199–208.

Opoku, A and Mills, S A (2019) Exploring the use of standardised design in addressing the shortage of primary school places in the UK. Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, 17(02), 383–401.

Opoku, A and Tallon, A (2019) The Role of Project Sponsors In Defining and Realising Project Benefits. In: Gorse, C and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 35th Annual ARCOM Conference, 2-4 September 2019, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, UK Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 710-719.

Opoku, A, Ahmed, V and Cruickshank, H (2015) Leadership style of sustainability professionals in the UK construction industry. Built Environment Project and Asset Management, 5(02), 184-201.

Opoku, A, Cruickshank, H and Ahmed, V (2015) Organizational leadership role in the delivery of sustainable construction projects in UK. Built Environment Project and Asset Management, 5(02), 154-69.

Opoku, A, Cruickshank, H, Guthrie, P and Georgiadou, M C (2014) Stakeholder engagement in research: The case of retrofit 2050 research project. In: Raiden, A and Aboagye-Nimo, E (Eds.), Proceedings 30th Annual ARCOM Conference, 1-3 September 2014, Portsmouth, UK, Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 237–46.

Opoku, A, Poshyanand, M, Elmualim, A, Kavishe, N, Mushtaha, E S N and Abdalla, S B (2022) Corruption in the Construction Industry: An insight from the Thai Construction Sector. In: Tutesigensi, A and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 38th Annual ARCOM Conference, 5-7 September 2022, Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow, UK. Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 307-316.

Opoku, A, Zhao, S, Lok, K L, Chen, C and Umar, T (2020) Promoting Employee Safety Performance in the Chinese Construction Industry. In: Scott, L and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 36th Annual ARCOM Conference, 7-8 September 2020, UK, Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 285-294.

Opoku, D J, Ayarkwa, J and Agyekum, K (2019) Barriers to environmental sustainability of construction projects. Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, 8(04), 292–306.

Xiang, Y, Bu, J, Zhu, K, Ma, K, Opoku, A, Florez-Perez, L, Zhang, H and Wu, Y (2023) Reconsidering adaptive industrialized construction in Chinese rural areas: responding to the challenge of COVID-19. Building Research & Information, 51(03), 316–32.

Xiang, Y, Opoku, A and Florez-Perez, L (2021) Carbon Emissions Optimisation in Prefabrication Construction: A Review of Current Design Integrated Approaches. In: Scott, L and Neilson, C J (Eds.), Proceedings 37th Annual ARCOM Conference, 6-7 September 2021, UK, Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 814-823.