For example, a contractor who is hired to complete a subproject within a given time frame may be unable to do so if the community contribution of materials is not delivered on time. This would mean also that the contractor has lost out on other potential work contracts. More emphasis needs to be given to legal issues related to community contracting at all levels, and some basic guidelines and training packages needs to be developed for all stakeholders. For example, many communities did not understand the full implications of a warranty and had not demanded that free services be provided to them during the warranty period. Any modifications that were made, for the most part, depended on the goodwill of the contractor.
Most communities have a maintenance committee and are prepared for minor repairs.
Capacity-building activities should take into account the high turnover rate of DEC members and provide short but frequent training interventions covering all aspects related to project management. Central vs. community contracting Because of time constraints, the study did not attempt to compare and contrast projects using community contracting vs. projects using central procurement methods. While Ching'ombe village had managed the entire process of selecting and hiring a contractor to build the borehole themselves, Magombo village, a village much closer to the capital city, lacked basic information about nearly every aspect of project implementation. However, they were very knowledgeable about whatever activities they as a community had undertaken or managed. For example, they gave us detailed information about the community contribution as well as activities carried out by the maintenance committee that they had elected.