Circular No. (1) of 2018 Concerning Capital Project Governance To all governmental entities in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi Peace and Allah’s mercy and blessings be upon you, In our endeavours to develop capit

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Circular No. (1) of 2018
Concerning Capital Project Governance
To all governmental entities in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi
Peace and Allah’s mercy and blessings be upon you,
In our endeavours to develop capital project governance in the Emirate and
in order to ensure the proper implementation thereof, the following shall be
observed:
1. Apply the measurement mechanism for capital projects from the
conceptual phase until final delivery, and determine the time frame for
each phase as per the Guide attached.
2. Plan for the main phases of the capital projects, study the risk register
including the precautionary plans in coordination with the relevant entities
to guarantee the continuity, delivery and operation of the projects on
time.
3. Close the final accounts and payments of the completed capital projects,
following the end of the guarantee period to prevent any future financial
claims.
4. guarantee the continuity of works on the corporate level especially in the
management of capital and operational projects.
We value your efforts and thank you for your cooperation
For your necessary action
May Allah guide you
Jassem Bu Ataba Al Zaabi
Chairman of the Executive Committee
For enquiries, please contact Sirs / Department of Urban Planning and Municipalities on
Tel: 024096171 or via email: ChairmanOffice@dpm.abudhabi.ae
Attachment: Guide of the Capital Project Governance for Governmental Entities
Date: 4/06/2018

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Guide of the Capital Project Governance for
Governmental Entities

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Table of Contents
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 3
2. Objectives and Scope of the Guide ........................................................................................................... 4
3. Concepts and Terms .................................................................................................................................. 4
3.1 Concept of Capital Project and its Start Date ..................................................................................... 4
3.1.1 Approved Capital Projects ........................................................................................................... 4
3.1.2 Non-Approved Capital Projects ................................................................................................... 4
3.2 Types of Capital Projects .................................................................................................................... 5
4. Approved Phases of the Capital Projects and their Definition .................................................................. 5
5. Standardised Approved Types of Capital Projects, their Phases and Weights ......................................... 6
6. Approved Time Frame of the Project Phases............................................................................................ 7
7. Measurement Mechanism and Colours for the Projects Timetable Workflow ......................................... 8
7.1 Colours of Measurement of the Projects Timetable Workflow Performance ..................................... 8
8. Measurement Mechanism and Colours for the Projects’ Financial Performance ..................................... 9
8.1 Colours of Measurement of the Projects’ Financial Performance ...................................................... 9
9. Example of Preparation of Programmes / Timetables according to this Guide ...................................... 10

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1 . Introduction
Abu Dhabi Government Departments and Institutions use different systems and standards to
manage capital projects, which results into a different method of reading and measuring the workflow
and performance of such projects. Thus, there was an urgent need to develop unified standards in this
field to save effort and money.
Based on the importance of using the best practices to set a unified framework for the projects, a
team was formed to develop the “proposed framework of the capital projects governance” pursuant to
the Executive Committee Resolution no. 30 s. 21/2015, in order to reach the following outputs:
First: Standardisation of the phases of capital projects.
Second: Standardisation of the measurement mechanism for capital projects from the
conceptual phase until final delivery.
Third: Increasing the requirements of the capital projects panel.
Whereas the esteemed Executive Committee approved all the outputs of the work team as stated
above in the Resolution no. (08/016/02/2016), and whereas the Executive Committee also approved the
time frame of the various phases of the capital projects in the Resolution no. (07/013/2/2017);
Thus, it was necessary to circulate the outputs of the “approved framework of the capital project
governance” to all governmental entities to apply the same and prepare this Guide that clarifies the
following:
• Various phases of the project and their time frames.
• Types of the projects.
• Measurement mechanism for the project’s progress according to the timetable and measurement
of the overall indicators of the projects’ performance.
• Measurement mechanism for the project’s financial performance.

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2. Objectives and Scope of the Guide
This Guide was prepared based on Abu Dhabi Government’s awareness of the importance of
implementation and governance of these projects, as they are necessary tools to implement the Emirate’s
plan and the programmes and projects included therein, especially the importance of the capital projects
in developing vital utilities, such as roads and infrastructure of various types, and the recreational
facilities. This Guide aims to:
• Standardise the measurement mechanism for the financial and technical performance of the
projects as they are essential elements of any project.
• Ensure easy preparation of the projects’ timetables, which would give accurate readings that are
reflected into the level of achievement of the government programmes for the Emirate.
• Ensure easy reading of the project’s phases due to the unification of the weights of such phases
among all the governmental entities and thus facilitate the decision-making process.
• Integrate the efforts among the various entities, each within its own competence.
• Use the best practices applied in the project follow-up systems.
• Serve as a reference to be used by all specialists and workers in the projects’ field in the Emirate
of Abu Dhabi.
These outputs and the content of this Guide apply to all types of capital projects in the Emirate of Abu
Dhabi.
3. Concepts and Terms
3.1 Concept of Capital Project and its Start Date
It is a planned process aimed at offering a service or product, to be implemented within a specific time
frame with a start and end date, using specific resources in order to achieve a beneficial change or an
added value.
3.1.1 Approved Capital Projects
Projects approved by the competent authority according to the legislations and rules in force in the
Emirate.
3.1.2 Non-Approved Capital Projects

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The requests submitted by the governmental entities as suggested projects to the competent authority and
no decision of approval/acceptance is issued in their regard.
3.2 Types of Capital Projects
The types of capital projects were classified according to the strategy of implementation of the project, in
order to ensure comprehensive classification of all projects, such as buildings, roads, gardens,
infrastructure, etc., and each type is used according to the objective of the project and the best way to
implement the same:
• (Design-Bid-Build): The projects for which a consultant is appointed to carry out the design
works, then a contractor is appointed to implement such works. This is considered the traditional
method of projects’ implementation.
• (Study): Study projects of which the outputs are studies, such as: Groundwater level - traffic
congestion, etc.
• (Design and Build): The projects for which a contractor (one entity) is contracted to be
responsible for the design and implementation of all the project’s works.
4. Approved Phases of the Capital Projects and their Definitions
The project goes through various phases considered as the project’s lifecycle. The start and end of each
phase are defined to ensure their standardisation in the preparation of the timetables and project
management among the entities, as follows:
Phase Description / Definition of the Phase
Initiation
This phase starts by the approval of the project budget and the
preparation of the terms of reference / request for proposal (RFP –
TOR) for the consultant
Consultant Contract
Signed
Floating of the TOR to the consultants; analysing bids; awarding the
contract (according to the contract budget) and signing the contract
Study / Design
Preparing the studies and design; preparing the tender documents for
the contractors and issuing No Objection Certificates (NOC)

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Contractor Appointment &
Signing of Contract
This phase involves the submission of the tender and in case of absence
of a supervision consultant, the tender shall be submitted to the
supervision consultant in this phase; analysing the financial and
technical offers; awarding and signing contracts
Implementation
It starts from the date of commencement of the works listed in the
contract (taking over of the site, letter of acceptance of the offer, ...)
until completion of the implementation of the contracting works and
issuance of the initial taking over certificate
Final handing over of the
project /
Close out
It starts from the period after the initial taking over until the end of the
year of guarantee, issuance of the final taking over certificate, issuance
of the final payment and close out report and release of the
performance bond
5. Standardised Approved Types of Capital Projects, their Phases and Weights
The projects were classified in three types according to their method of implementation and a weight was
specified to each phase as these are considered the key phases in the preparation of the main timetables of
the projects. Each entity shall then, according to its competence, list the detailed plans of each phase
according to the nature of the project:
Phase
(WBS)
Types of the Projects
and Weight of each Phase
Design-Bid-Build Study Design and Build
Initiation 1% 1% 1%
Consultant Contract
Signed
1% 5% 1%
Study / Design 10% 90% 3%
Contractor Appointment &
Signing of Contract
5% NA 5%
Implementation 1 82% NA 89%
Final handing over of the
project /
Close out
1% 4% 1%
Remarks:

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- The capital project shall be considered completed in case the total percentage of completion
reaches 99%.
6. Approved Time Frame of the Project Phases
The time periods of each phase of the project were studied according to the best practices followed in the
field of project management, in order to ensure that the implementation of such projects are synchronised
and coordinated with the government programmes and the strategic plans. These phases were calculated
in months for ease of preparation of the timetables:
Phase Suggested Time Frame for each Phase (by months) 1
(Project Value) From 0 to 10
million
From 10 to 20
million
From 20 to
120 million
More than
120 million
Initiation 1 1 1 2
Consultant Contract Signed 4 4 4 4
Study / Design 6 8 10 12
Contractor Appointment & Signing
of Contract
4 4 4 4
Implementation 12 12 18 24
Final handing over of the project /
Close out 12 12 12 12
Period required for the completion of
the project from the start
until initial taking over (by months)
27 29 37 46
Remarks:
1. The time periods suggested above are binding to all entities and in case of need for an
additional period, the relevant entity shall clarify the justifications for requesting the
additional period, provided that the approval of the competent authority is obtained.
2. The procedures of approval of the project shall not be included within the suggested time
frame.

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3. This period is subject to change according to the contractual conditions / requirements of
the entities (some entities have a final handing over period of up to 36 months).
7. Measurement Mechanism and Colours for the Projects Timetable Workflow
When the governmental entities submit their projects for approval, the governmental entity shall
determine the period required for the implementation of each phase - according to the phases table
explained above, then the completion period of each phase shall be approved by the competent authority,
considered the baseline for these projects.
The actual achievement shall be measured in comparison to the planned achievement according to the
baseline, as follows:
Percentage of completion of the project = actual achievement / planned achievement *100
7.1 Colours of Measurement of the Projects Timetable Workflow Performance
Based on the calculation of the percentages of completion according to the equation above, the
performance of the timetable will be referred to in colours, for ease of identification of the status of the
project, as follows:
Definition Colour
Exceeding the target (performance exceeded by 110%)
According to the plan (performance between 90% and 110%)
Less than the target (performance between 80 and 90%)
Performance below the required level (performance less than 80%)
Ceased/suspended project (Pursuant to a resolution of the competent
authority)
Not started yet (it is not planned to start this project during the
specified period)

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8. Measurement Mechanism and Colours for the Projects’ Financial Performance
Due to the importance of knowing the expenditure in the project, the following indicators were
developed:
1- Monthly expenditure percentage = actual monthly accumulative expenditure / accumulative
planned expenditure for every months (per each fiscal year) *100
Annual to date (Accumulative Actual Paid Vs Planned)
2- Total expenditure percentage: actual monthly accumulative expenditure / approved cost of the
project (for the whole period of the project) *100
Overall Cost to date (Accumulative Actual Paid Vs Project total cost)
8.1 Colours of Measurement of the Projects’ Financial Performance
Based on the calculation of the percentages of expenditure according to the equation above, the financial
performance and efficiency of expenditure will be referred to in colours, for ease of identification of the
project’s financial performance, as follows:
Definition Colour
Expenditure as planned (between 90% and 110%)
Expenditure less than planned (between 80% and 90%)
Planned expenditure was not observed (less than 80%)

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9. Example of Preparation of Programmes / Timetables according to this Guide
This example is considered as a guiding reference for the Design-Bid-Build project, in order to learn how
to prepare the programme according to this Guide. This example contains only high-level phases, the
project’s works shall be detailed and the tasks details shall be set in the project’s timetable.
Task Name Months Weight Actual
Progress
Planned
Progress
Project18m 39.6
months 100 0 0
Initiation and Approval 1.0 month 1 0 0
Preparation, review and approval of the TOR 1.7 month 1 0 0
Consultant contract signed 4.0 months 1 0 0
Internal procedures 2.7 months 0.58 0 0
Approval authority 0.0 month 0.11 0 0
Consultant contract prepared and signed 0.8 month 0.31 0 0
Design 6.0 months 10 0 0
Preparations for the project by the consultant 0.2 month 1.2 0 0
Preparation, review and approval of the initial report 1.4 month 1.5 0 0
Preparation and review of the initial designs 1.9 month 2.4 0 0
Preparation and review of the detailed designs 1.3 month 1.7 0 0
Obtaining the designs approved by the relevant
departments and entities 0.3 month 1 0 0
Preparation, review and approval of the tender
documents 1.2 month 2.2 0 0
Contractor’s appointment and signing of contract 4.0 months 5 0 0
Internal procedures 3.8 months 2.94 0 0
Approval authority 3.0 months 0.53 0 0
Contractor contract prepared and signed 1.3 month 1.53 0 0
Implementation 12.0
months 82 0 0
Final handing over and close out 12.0
months 1 0 0

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