Factors influencing sustainability of development projects: A case of Mercy Ministry International Rwanda in the Rubavu community

Abstract

This paper examined the factors influencing development projects sustainability in Mercy Ministry
International projects. The specific objectives were to establish whether organizational leadership,
Monitoring and evaluation, community participation and government policies influence development
projects sustainability of Mercy Ministry International projects. The study was guided by leadership
contingency model theory and stakeholder theory. A descriptive research design was adopted in the
study. Mercy Ministry International Rwanda in the Rubavu community was the unit of analysis and the
unit of observation was project managers and project team members of the organization. A census of
95 respondents was carried out. Primary data was collected using questionnaires. The researcher
used inferential statistics to establish the extent to which variables studied related to each other. The
study established that organizational leadership (β=4.207, P<0.05) monitoring and evaluation
β=1.170, P<0.05), community participation (β=2.827, P<0.05), and government policies (β=1.342,
P<0.05), had a positive and significant influence on development projects sustainability. The
researcher concluded that organizational leadership plays a critical role in fostering decision
development, developing policies and disseminating project management best practices throughout the
organization. Monitoring and evaluation helps those participating with some form of project to
determine if change is needed. Government policies assist in mitigating legal risk and encourage the
company to explain the advantages and incentives that the organization provides its employees in terms
of project sustainability. The study recommended that the organization’s management should focus on
the common project goals and encourage their employees to work towards the shared goal even during
conflicts. The organization should conduct a readiness assessment to determine the capacity and
willingness of the organization and its development partners to construct a results-based M&E system.
The organization should encourage active and representative engagement in order to allow all
members of the community to have a substantive effect on the decisions that concern sustainability of
the project. The organization management should develop a series of high-level policy statements that
provide guidance to employees at all levels towards effective project sustainability.