Infrastructure programmes across Africa depend on contracts that allocate risk precisely, and many of them use FIDIC forms favoured by governments, development banks and international contractors. Time bars, notice requirements and certification procedures leave little room for informal habits, and a single missed step can extinguish a legitimate claim or expose an employer to avoidable cost.

The Policy and Regulatory Frameworks for Contract Management & Administration (FIDIC) Training Course walks through the life of a contract in the order events occur. Participants start with the regulatory and policy environment, covering public procurement rules, funder requirements and contract formation, and then examine the allocation of responsibilities and risks in the general and particular conditions. Later sessions deal with programme control, variations, payment, claims, delay analysis and the stages of dispute avoidance and resolution.

Instruction is practical. Delegates work on sample correspondence, claim files and payment applications, draft notices against real contract clauses and take part in a mock adjudication, so they can apply the clauses to their own projects the following week.

At the close of the course, participants will be able to:

• Describe the structure and risk allocation of the main FIDIC forms and when each is used.
• Distinguish the roles and authority of the Employer, Engineer and Contractor.
• Apply the regulatory and policy requirements that frame public and donor-funded contracts.
• Prepare and respond to notices, instructions and variations within contractual time limits.
• Evaluate and certify interim payments, retention and final accounts.
• Assess claims for extension of time and additional cost using records and programme evidence.
• Use dispute avoidance, dispute boards and adjudication procedures to resolve disagreements.

The course is relevant to those who administer or advise on engineering and construction contracts, including:

• Contract managers and contract administrators
• Project managers and resident engineers
• Quantity surveyors and cost consultants
• Procurement officers in public entities
• Legal officers and in-house counsel
• Contractor commercial and site managers
• Donor and development bank project staff
• Auditors reviewing construction contracts

Participants take with them:

• A clause map showing key obligations, notices and time limits.
• Templates for notices of claim, instructions and variation orders.
• A payment certification checklist.
• A method for building an extension of time and cost claim from project records.
• A contemporaneous record-keeping system for site teams.
• A decision path from early warning to adjudication.

The course treats contract administration as a set of skills to be rehearsed, not simply read about. Delegates take part in:

• Clause-by-clause workshops using extracts from the standard conditions
• Case files of delayed and disrupted projects
• Drafting sessions for notices, instructions and claim letters
• A mock adjudication with participants as parties and decision makers
• Review of participants' own contract problems in small groups

Those who attend the full programme and complete the exercises will be issued a CPD-accredited Certificate of Completion by Vision Reach Global Consultancy.