CBPM Conference 2026 · Vol. 2026, Issue 1

Stakeholder Participation Patterns Across Construction Project Stages in the Niger Delta: Archival Evidence from Public Sector Projects in Nigeria

Temidayo Michael Ajibare Chikezirim Okorafor, and Iruka Chijindu Anugwo

Keywords: Archival document report, Construction project performance, Niger Delta, Project governance, Stakeholder participation.

Abstract

Construction project underperformance in Nigeria's Niger Delta region are long-standing challenges in governance and delivery concern but the significance of stakeholder participation throughout the entire project lifecycle has received little empirical attention, especially in riverine public sector contexts. This study rooted in Freeman's Stakeholder Theory, aims to document and analyse active stakeholder participation patterns across the different stages in lifecycle of completed public sector construction projects in Ondo State, Niger Delta, Nigeria. It also to assess the implications of identified participation deficits for project performance. The study used an archival document analysis of records from 48 projects performed by OPADEC and UBEB between 2016 and 2024 to apply a systematic 18 roles of participation assessment framework across four life cycle stages. The findings show that involvement rates remained below 60% throughout the conception, design and planning and construction phases with 100% participation only noted at the commissioning stage. This pattern is interpreted as evidence of performative rather than substantive engagement in which public participation is concentrated at project completion events while the most crucial decision-making phases to project quality and community alignment receive little stakeholder input. The report advocates mandatory participatory governance protocols from project conception to commissioning, institutional accountability reforms for OPADEC and UBEB and the implementation of participatory monitoring frameworks that empower host communities throughout the project’s lifespan.