Volume IX - Issue Vi - June 2007
Regional Reports
 The Project Management Profession in Colombia -
According to Project Management World Today’s (PMWT) interest in learning about the development of the Project Management Profession worldwide, I met with Mr. German Bernate, president of the PMI Bogota Chapter. While sharing a wonderful Colombian Coffee, Mr. Bernate explained to me the actual situation of the Project Management profession in Colombia, and shared some of his experiences as President of this chapter. The following is a synthesis of the opinions that Mr. Bernate generously shared with PMWT. PMWT – What is the actual Picture of PMI in Colombia, and particularly in the Bogotá Chapter? German Bernate (GB) – Actually, There are 900 members of PMI in Colombia, 308 of them are members of the Bogotá Chapter. The intention of the chapter is to continue growing, attracting the other 600 Colombian members who are not registered into the chapter and that are mainly interested in receiving material from PMI and not on being part of our activities.
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 Project Management, a Strategic Instrument for Effective Political Governance and Economic Development
Since the second quarter of this year, the Nigerian election has been the most topical issue in the country. It is almost impossible to find any other subject that has captured the nation’s attention. As such, a report on any business or professional topic on Nigeria which excludes the election is irrelevant and at best incomplete. It is sad that since the elections in April, the nation is yet to settle into full normal activities. While the government is working towards a handover of power to newly elected officers on May 29th 2007, some opposition politicians are challenging the results in election tribunals. And others are planning demonstrations and strike. Without commending or condemning any of these groups and their activities, it would appear that the protesters are fighting the symptoms and fruits of the ills in our nation rather than the root of the problems. A hybrid of corruption and indiscipline is the root of our problems. It is an exercise in wishful thinking and daydreaming if we think that we can successfully organise a free and fair election in our society where corruption is thriving, and where having an active or covert association with a ruling political party could be a guaranteed, if questionable, avenue to wealth. If all the efforts being made to protest the election results had been channelled, in the past few years, into vigorous nation-wide campaigns to clean up our society, it is most probable that we would have achieved a more disciplined nation, and as a consequence obtained more widely acceptable election results. Therefore, without getting bogged down in the quagmire of lamentations over the failures of the elections, I would want to discuss our current situation, including some reforms already instituted and our failings. I would also suggest how project management could be used as an instrument to contribute to the cure of such failings by developing transparency and accountability in our national governance and economic development. I would also discuss some examples in other nations. Lastly, I intend to peer into an optimistic future for the country including suggestions on how we could get there. Read complete report in English
Regional Report - United Kingdom By Miles Shepherd Major change for Planning Approval The UK Government has proposed a major shift in the process of approving major projects. The UK construction industry has suffered delays to many major projects as protestors drag out the approval process by spoiling tactics at Planning Inquiries. London Airport’s Terminal 5 development took more than 7 years as separate permissions under seven different pieces were required. The Planning process has long been criticised for its confused state which has lead to severe delays to many controversial construction projects in new highway construction, power plant development and out of town supermarket builds. Under new proposals, announced in a White Paper last week (21 May), a new independent commission would take responsibility for the final decision on all major infrastructure projects. Environmental and rural protection groups immediately threatened action, protesting that yet another QUANGO would further erode parliamentary accountability and predicted that plans to restrict public consultation would lead to civil disobedience, returning the country to direct, and often illegal, action Read complete report in English
Regional Report - Spain Alfonso Bucero
SPANISH REPRESENTATION HAS GROWN IN THE PMI EMEA CONGRESS 2007 Budapest May 14-16th Fifteen Spanish professionals attended to the PMI EMEA Congress on 14-16 de Mayo at Budapest. Fortunately, the need of sharing experiences and keeping updated in the project management profession is starting up to be crucial for the professional development of Spanish project professionals. After last year’s PMI EMEA Congress in Madrid, It seems that the interest and the Spanish participation has been increased. TODAY IS A GOOD DAY for the project management profession in Spain. We hope more Spanish attendees for 2008, which PMI EMEA Congress will be celebrated in Morocco (Marrakesh). In this case, the geographic location should help us to get more participants. Read complete report in English | Spanish
Update from various Northern Hemisphere corners – Helsinki, Waldorf, Orlando, Vancouver, Rome Carol Dekkers March through May is a reliably busy time for this correspondent’s conference and travel schedule and 2007 has been no exception. For me, the three months have included travels to Helsinki, Finland; Waldorf, Germany; Orlando, USA; Vancouver, Canada; and Rome, Italy; for a variety of Information Communications and Technology (ICT) project management and measurement events. Read complete report in English
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