Construction manager Tobias Vokuhl MCIOB is helping to manage the construction of schools and safe houses for young survivors of human trafficking in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Last year saw the opening of a 30-bed leprosy treatment centre he designed and project managed in Nepal鈥檚 second city, Pokhara.
The non-governmental organisations (NGOs) he鈥檚 worked for jumped at the chance to deploy his construction management expertise. He in turn is keen to introduce international best practice to Nepal鈥檚 construction industry. It鈥檚 one of Asia鈥檚 poorest and most rural countries, but it鈥檚 urbanising rapidly, especially in the Kathmandu Valley where the capital sits.
Health and safety, adequate design, and effective project management are sorely needed. But he鈥檚 learned that you can鈥檛 impose external standards on a culture that is unprepared for them. He鈥檚 not giving up, though, and thinks the CIOB could help.
How he got there
Tobias completed a carpentry apprenticeship in his native Germany at 18, and later gained a master鈥檚 in construction project management from the UK鈥檚 Oxford Brookes University. He worked for several years as contracts manager with Beard Construction, managing projects in the 拢5m range.
He and his wife became increasingly aware of global needs and, in 2017, when their three children had reached primary-school age, the family moved to Nepal, which had invited international help in rebuilding after a devastating 2015 earthquake that destroyed or damaged 800,000 homes.
He was seconded to a Nepalese NGO, the International Nepal Fellowship (INF), which works in public health and community development, and runs three hospitals. Tobias helped with project management training, project delivery and, more recently, masterplanning, and helping the leadership to strategically develop INF sites.
鈥淚 think they were quite keen to have me,鈥� he chuckles. 鈥淭here were plenty of opportunities to throw certain tools and methods at the local context, and also to realise what works and doesn鈥檛 work there.鈥�
The initial secondment was for 18 months, but the Vokuhl family are still there, spending 10 months a year in Nepal and two in the UK.
Clean sheet of paper
鈥淚t certainly was something I never thought as a contracts manager I鈥檇 be doing: given a clean sheet of paper and told, please go away and use your knowledge and understanding and draw on locally available models and come up with the best solution for us. It was amazing.
鈥淚t鈥檚 wonderful to think there鈥檚 a building in Pokhara now that for years will hopefully render a good service.鈥�
He鈥檚 currently working for a Nepalese NGO that helps survivors of human trafficking. With funds from the Canadian charity, Ally Global Foundation, the NGO is building seven safe houses in Kathmandu, a school, a vocational training centre, and other buildings. The NGO currently has 150 minors in safe houses, but wants to own the new houses because renting puts the survivors at risk. When we spoke, the project was in the detailed design phase.
In this project as others, he鈥檚 feeling his way with introducing best practice.
Testing the waters
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a long learning experience over nearly seven years in terms of this is the theory, and where are we here? And how does this global south environment and the contextual and cultural assumptions actually engage with the textbook material?鈥�
Nepal does have regulations. The Nepalese building code stipulates that contractors and clients must enforce the code and ensure an element of worker wellbeing, but it lacks specifics.
鈥淚t鈥檚 there in principle and I鈥檝e had to test the waters as to what can I actually push the contractor to do. Initially, I鈥檇 started with hard hats, high-visibility vests, safety boots, risk assessments and method statements.
鈥淏ut after a while you realise the industry just doesn鈥檛 do risk assessments and method statements. And I had to accept I can鈥檛 force labourers to wear safety boots. They鈥檝e been working in flip-flops all their lives. So in that instance I said look, we鈥檙e going to protect heads. If you have a foot injury, it is what it is, but we鈥檙e going to stick with the hard hats.鈥�
Thinking laterally
Now he鈥檚 thinking laterally about how to encourage change. He鈥檚 tried giving contractors some training and encouraging them to pass the learning down to the workforce. He鈥檚 thinking about what incentives might work.
He also thinks the CIOB could have a role, and would like to establish a hub in Nepal. Its Professional Development Programme (PDP) could be relevant for Nepalese graduates, he believes.
鈥淢y hope really is with young Nepalis who鈥檝e just come out of university,鈥� he says. 鈥淭heir openness to the world and willingness to learn, and also often the need to work in other countries such as in the Middle East 鈥� I think that鈥檚 the point at which you can engage with people and say, look, I鈥檓 not just making up this stuff, it鈥檚 actually internationally accepted good practice, so if you engage with this you may have career benefits.
鈥淚鈥檓 talking to the funders on my current project to see if we could put a few people through PDP , because then we鈥檝e got common reference points in terms of what we鈥檙e trying to push. So, you know, let鈥檚 see.鈥�
