Enabling regulatory coherence in the Eswatini construction industry

Despite contributing to economic growth, the construction industry is challenging to regulate. Ineffective regulation compromises the economic sustainability of the industry. Therefore, this phenomenological study explored the barriers and enablers of regulatory coherence in the Eswatini construction industry. Forty-five (45) participants holding various construction industry positions were selected through purposive sampling for the qualitative strand of the study. The textual data were collected through semi-structured interviews using open-ended questions and analysed thematically. The findings revealed that overregulation, discrepancies in the framework, corruption, and ineffective leadership in the CIC hindered regulatory coherence in Eswatini Construction (barriers). The results indicate that stakeholder engagement, legislative harmonisation, transparency, and accountability enable the coherence of the regulatory framework (enablers). Through the promotion of the enablers, including legislative framework review as well as research and development, stakeholders could better manage the factors that impede the effective regulation and performance of the industry.