Opposition leader Matthew Wale says the lack of control of quality building materials imported into the country has been an area of great vulnerability for our construction sector.
Speaking in Parliament on Tuesday, when contributing on the National Building Standards Bill 2025, Wale said this situation has been particularly bad in the last 25 years.
He said being referred to as a poor country makes Solomon Islands a price-sensitive market.
Thus, Wale said some importers have exploited the price-sensitivity by bringing in poor and substandard building materials which allow higher margins to be charged on them.
“There has been no control whatsoever on this,” he told parliament.
“There is need for a robust certification process for importers to ensure there is quality control at the points of entry,” he added.
Wale said this would be the most efficient way to enforce compliance with mandatory quality standards for building materials, coupled with hefty penalties for those who breach such quality standards.
The Opposition Leader said currently the liability for loss or damage due to the structural weakness or destruction of a building lies on the owner or the lessor of the building.
He said it is worthy of consideration whether to extend such liability to reflect responsibility for the quality of building materials, quality of workmanship, and the approvals & permits process.
Wale said each contribute to the integrity and safety of buildings, and each should share in any liability arising out of their element of a destroyed or damaged building.
“I am not sure that this is done anywhere, and it may be impractical. But it is worthy of study. It would surely improve the overall incentive and high vigilance for safety in buildings,” the Opposition Leader said.
The National Building Standards Bill 2025, amongst other things, was initiated to:
- provide for the minimum standards for buildings and building construction work in Solomon Islands
- facilitate national uniformity in building construction work, which includes uniform use of building products and components, construction methods, building designs and building systems
- (iii) ensure that acceptable standards of structural sufficiency, fire safety, sanitation and amenity are maintained for the health, safety and security of the occupants or users of buildings
- (iv) stipulate appropriate accessibility to occupants or users of buildings
- promote and provide for the construction of environmentally efficient buildings, including by being resilient to the impacts of climate change, and
- (vi) ensure buildings and building construction work comply with climate change mitigation and adaptation measures.