Factors Militating against Effective Maintenance of Tertiary Institutions' Buildings in Enugu Urban, Nigeria

Abstract

The efficiency and performance of buildings are influenced by the level of maintenance carried out on them. In tertiary institutions, maintenance among other functions is the prerogative of the institute's department of works; however, the conspicuous unmaintained buildings in most of the institutions create room for questioning the reason for the existing anomaly. The aim of the study was to identify the factors militating against effective maintenance of tertiary institutions' buildings with a view to creating awareness of them so as to induce the consciousness required for initiating a positive response. In achieving this aim, the study made use of both primary and secondary data for eliciting the relevant information. A survey was carried out on the five tertiary institutions in Enugu urban using both oral interview and questionnaire to elicit the necessary data. The simple random sampling was applied to a list of heads of academic departments of each institution, while the head of department of works of each institution was added to generate a sample size of 91. Out of the 91 questionnaires distributed, 59 was returned and used for the study. The study revealed that lack of funds plus the bureaucracy associated with accessing them, and absence of maintenance policy were the major hindrances to effective maintenance. The conclusion reached was that tertiary institutions' buildings in Enugu urban are not well maintained due to lack of funds and absence of maintenance policy. The recommendation was that government, as a matter of urgency should make funds available as well as simplify the process of accessing them; furthermore, institutions are to develop and adopt a maintenance policy, which will provide direction to maintenance action.