Social sustainability in procurement of construction projects: A literature review from a Nigerian perspective

The social phenomenon has remained the most intangible among the three aspects of sustainability practices whose contribution is often understated in procurement of construction projects. Furthermore, this trend is amplified in emerging economies such as Nigeria. To begin to address this and as part of a larger study, a literature review from a Nigerian perspective is undertaken on the implementation of social sustainability factors in the procurement of institutional buildings in Nigeria. The research is based on a literature review and underpinned by the theory of change. From the literature review carried out, a gap is identified that shows an imbalance in implementation of the triple bottom line (TBL) on construction projects. This is primarily a result of the poor implementation of policies that drive the implementation of sustainable construction. The imbalance in policy implementation constitutes barriers to the integration of the social aspect of sustainability by construction professionals. However, sustainability is shown to deploy procurement to support the wider social, economic and environmental objectives. The theory of change aided in understanding the problem through back casting, by first identifying the long-term benefits of implementing sustainable procurement and then working backwards, to identifying the various conditions (outcomes) that must be in place for the goals to occur. In supporting this, the outcome of the literature review is expected to bring about proposed reforms, in the rules of engagement of workers in the industry while contributing towards a larger investigation on social sustainability in procurement of construction projects in Nigeria.