1. Introduction

Sustainable development can be defined in terms of approaches that reduce negative environmental impacts while creating beneficial social and economic impacts. The Sustainable Development Goals developed by the UN define desired impacts in terms of 17 goals and sub-targets that countries should achieve by 2030 ^[1].

However, progress in achieving the SDGs has been poor and current trajectories indicate that many targets will not be achieved ^[2].

=It is therefore important to identify and adopt approaches that more effectively integrate the achievement of the SDGs in industry practices^[3][4].

Within the construction sector, environmental impact is addressed by legislation such as Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) and green building rating tools such as BREEAM, LEED and CASBEE. These green building rating tools were developed in the UK, USA and Japan and are well established.

However, reviews indicate that some green building rating tools only partially address the SDGs and have a very limited focus on social and economic sustainability impacts ^[5][6][7].

In developing countries, social and economic issues such as unemployment, health and education are important priorities. Developing countries also tend to have large infrastructure backlogs that need to be addressed and the construction of new housing and education and health facilities is likely to continue in the short to medium term^[8]. (UN-Habitat and IHS-Erasmus University Rotterdam, 2018).

Carrying out these construction projects provides a valuable opportunity to create beneficial social and economic impacts such as local employment and support the achievement of the SDGs.

2. Implications of the Sustainable Development Goals for Building Construction

An analysis of the SDGs indicates that some goals, such as those related to water, energy and cities have direct implications for construction. For others, such as those on poverty and inclusion, the implications are less clear and may be indirect. Implications for construction derived from the SDGs are shown in Table 1.

Table 1. Tthe Sustainable Development Goals and building construction implicationsable below.

3. What measures are currently undertaken to create beneficial social and economic impacts through construction?

Creating beneficial social and economic impacts through construction requires socian approach that values construction and buildings differentlyl and economic impacts to be specified as outcomes and planning and investments made to achieve these. This approach can be illustrated through the example below.

From a government’s point of view, marginalization and unemployment have substantial impacts and costs and investments haves to be made to address thisaddressed. Therefore, if construction provides a way of tackladdressing these types of social and economic issuesis effectively it is worth investpursuing this and making in this andvestments that creatinge both beneficial social and economic impacts as well as the asset itself (CIDB, 2004)^[9]. Fro

Exam this perspective,les of construction processesmethods used to create both assets and beneneficial social and economic impacts are outlined below.

Labour-intensive construction

Labour-intensive construction describes construction approaches which pursue opportunities to create employment and work opportunities for people. Thus, building designs, the selection of materials, and construction methods aim to maximize the use of manual methods rather than the use of equipment to create and sustain jobs (Department of Public Works, 2012)^[10]. Expenditure in any sector can create jobs, however, the construction sector is one of the most efficient at generating employment for a given investment (Department of Public Works, 1998).

Increasing the labour intensity of construction can be achieved through a focused approach that evaluates the employment impacts of different options and selects those that maximize the creation of jobs without adversely affecting construction quality, timeframes or costs (Department of Public Works, 2012).

Small enterprise development

Small enterprise development describes approaches in which services and products are procured from small enterprises during construction projects to support and develop these.

This can be achieved through procurement processes that require the main, or large contractors, to source goods and services from small enterprises. Alternatively, contracts may be broken down into smaller packages which can be procured from smaller enterprises instead of one large contractor.

The extent to which services and products are procured from small enterprises depends on the complexity and nature of the project. It is also important to ensure that small enterprises can grow sustainability to meet demand. An example of a small enterprise target is 30% of the services and products used in construction to be procured from small, medium, rural and township enterprises (National Treasury, 2020).

Health and sSafety

Health and safety describes processes that ensure that construction workers are healthy and safe. While health and safety are increasingly addressed in legislation and policy, this is not always carried through into everyday practices on site. In addition, conventional health and safety measures focus on issues such as injuries that may occur on-site. In developing countries, it may be necessary to go beyond this and address conditions that are prevalent locally, such as HIV/AIDS^[11].

Education and training

Education and training describe capacity development activities that are conducted to improve the knowledge and skills of people who work on construction and buildings^[12]. These activities aim to ensure that the people receiving them can access further work and self-employment activities after the completion of the work on site.

Capacity development activities may include formal training on the construction site accessed through an academic institution or consist of informal mentoring by an experienced person or contractor. It may also include short regular training sessions such as toolbox sessions before work starts on site in the morning, or short courses on a specific skill, such as waterproofing which may be provided by a product supplier.

The selection of materials and products

The selection of materials and products specified in buildings can be used to increase employment in several ways. Firstly, mMaterials and products that are produced locally can be specified instead of those imported from another country. This supports the creation of local jobs and businesses (Gibberd, 2016)^[13]. Secondly, materials and products that are more labour intensive to produce, can be specified. Thirdly, materials and specifications that require more labour to assemble into parts of the building may be specified in preference to materials that require create very little employment.

Inclusion

Inclusion refers to a focus on ensuring that benefits from construction, such as employment, can be accessed by everyone. This means that there is an emphasis on ensuring that people such as women, youth and people with disabilities who may be marginalized can access opportunities^[14].

Participation targets differ but as a general rule, they attempt to reflect national demographics. Thus the employment participation targets for women could be 50%, Youth 40% and people with disabilities 10% (Department of Social Development 2015). Targets depend on the local situation, available skills and objectives of the project.

4. Conclusions and recommendation

The study identifies actionsxamples show that can be taken during the construction of projects to support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and achieve can make substantial beneficial social and economic impacts.

It shows that while some of these actions have been identified and incorporated into snd support the achievement of the Sustainable construction processes, others have not. The study recommends that fDevelopment Goals. Further research is carried out oon the alignmentintegration of SDGs withinto construction processes to enhance the achievement of SDGs by the industryis recommended. In implementing construction programmejects that aims to achieve social and economic bsustainability benefits, the following recommendations are made:

Awareness and training

An important initial step for achieving social and economic beneficial impacts through construction is awareness and training. Planning and a structured approach also need to be in place so that the client, built environment consultants and contractors understand social and economic impact objectives and their role in achieving these (Gibberd, 2004)^[15].

Procurement and the administration of contracts

Effective procurement and contract administration processes are required to ensure that social and economic targets are achieved in practice. Targets must be integrated as deliverables in contracts and their achievement tracked (CIDB, 2020; Gibberd, 2004)^[12].

Support

While making sustainable construction targets a contractual commitment helps ensure they are achieved, structured responsive support also helps increase the chances of success. For example, support can be provided to local communities before construction projects start to ensure they are prepared and can benefit optimally from opportunities.