7 and 8 - Government of Botswana

able possibility in Technical Auditing. In such a case, it will be up to the Client to weigh up the advice of both
parties and to reach his own, independent conclusions.
- As an independent professional carrying out his duties in an impartial manner and in accordance with his prescribed
Terms of Reference, the Auditor’s role should not be in confl ict with the Supervising Engineer. The Auditor’s report
should be objective and fully quantifi ed. All parties should be provided with an opportunity to respond to the Audit
Report. In principle, the Auditor’s role vis-à-vis the Supervising Engineer is no different from that of one consultant
reviewing the design of another.
● The type of investigations undertaken by the Auditor and the Supervising Engineer are, in general, quite different. There may
be some areas of overlap, for example, check testing of materials and assessment of workmanship, but the Auditor’s role goes
well beyond check testing of materials and includes checks on compliance with a range of technical and contractual matters,
including.
■ Initial audit: - project management issues and construction methodologies.
■ Intermediate audit - conformance with specifi cation and matters of effectiveness.
■ Final audit – conformance with all aspects of the contract.
4. SUMMARY AND CLOSURE
4.1 Summary of Key Issues
The summary of key observations and issues emanating from the workshop was presented by the Workshop Facilitator, Mr. Mike
Pinard, and are as follows:
4.1.1 Guideline No. 8
● The use of certain terminology, such as “marginal” “non-standard” or “relaxed standards”, as applied to local surfacing
aggregates, can convey negative signals which can be very misleading. For example, a material that is marginal in terms of
strength may fail when carrying high traffi c volumes with a high percentage of heavy vehicles, but may often perform entirely
satisfactorily in a low volume road situation in a rural area. Ultimately, the selection of aggregate should be based on the
concept of its “fi tness for purpose”.
● Many of the current specifi cations for surfacing aggregate apply to “ideal” materials found in the temperate climates where
conditions are very different to those prevailing in Botswana. Rigid application of these specifi cations often rules out the use
of many satisfactory local materials. Thus, careful selection and testing of local materials is required in order to obtain a basic
understanding of their properties as a basis for applying appropriate specifi cations as recommended in the Guideline.
● Pending the revision of the BRDM and the Standard Specifi cation for Road and Bridge Works, deviation from the current
specifi cations, for example the 10% FACT, should be considered on a case-by-case basis during the design stage and not after
the project has been let when contentious contractual issues pertaining to a change of project specifi cation can arise. The
workshop concluded that a 10 % FACT of 150 – 180 kN (depending on traffi c) would be appropriate for most of the roads in
Botswana.
● Environmental issues are assuming greater importance and the continued use of gravel for re-gravelling purposes is unsu-
stainable. This will engender a need to consider carefully the use of low cost surfacings in which aggregates of relatively low
quality can be used with an appropriate type of seal. This ahs proved to be the case on many road projects in Botswana.
4.1.2 Guideline No. 7
● Technical Auditing of road projects is assuming greater importance in Botswana than hitherto and complements the Financial
Auditing that is currently undertaken of publicly funded projects. It seeks to ascertain whether the Government and the
general public get “value for money” and, in so doing, engenders greater accountability in the expenditure of public funds.
Proceedings of Roads Department Workshop June 2003, Guidelines 7 and 8 17