Influence of Project Management Practices on Construction Project Performance in Rwanda: A Case of the Muhanga–Nyange Road Project
Redempta Kanyandekwe and Thomas Tarus
University of Kigali, Rwanda
Email: redempta.kanyan@gmail.com
Abstract: This study examined the influence of project management practices on construction project performance in Rwanda, using the Muhanga–Nyange Road Construction Project as a case. It assessed the effects of project planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closure on performance, guided by Project Management Theory, Systems Theory, Contingency Theory and the Resource-Based View. A quantitative, explanatory, cross-sectional case study design was adopted. A census of all 120 project stakeholders (project management team, contractor/implementing partner staff, technical personnel/consultants and client representatives) yielded 120 usable questionnaires (100% response rate). A structured five-point Likert questionnaire (Cronbach’s alpha = .857 to .913) was used, and data were analyzed in IBM SPSS Version 27 using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression. Planning (β = .254, p = .035), execution (β = .290, p = .015), monitoring and control (β = .185, p = .009) and closure (β = .175, p = .010) each had a positive and statistically significant effect on performance, and together explained 69.4% of its variance (R² = .694, F(4, 115) = 65.36, p < .001). Execution was the strongest predictor. The study concludes that performance improves when management practices are applied effectively across the whole project life cycle. It recommends that the Rwanda Transport Development Agency and other infrastructure stakeholders institutionalize standardized project management frameworks covering all four phases, strengthen contractor supervision, progress reporting and stakeholder feedback at closure, and invest in project management capacity.
