October 13, 2026 • Sana’a University
Researcher Abdullah Abdulrab Ahmed Abdulkarim was awarded a PhD degree in Business Administration for his dissertation titled “The Role of Project Management Knowledge Areas in the Quality of Construction Projects Through Strategic Planning: A Field Study on the Construction Sector of the Yemeni Economic Corporation". The dissertation was submitted to the Center of Business Administration for Graduate Studies at Sana’a University. The dissertation defense was held on Tuesday, October 13, 2026.
The PhD Viva-Voce Committee consisted of the following members:
• Assoc. Prof. Abdul Razzaq Mohammed Qaed Al-Morani – Sana’a University – Internal Examiner and Committee Chair.
• Assoc. Prof. Ali Saleh Ali Al-Ajam – Hodeidah University – External Examiner and Committee Member.
• Prof. Abdullah Ali Ahmed Al-Qurashi – Thamar University – Supervisor and Committee Member.
The study aimed to investigate the role of project management knowledge areas, namely project integration management, project resource management, project cost management, project schedule management, and project procurement management, in achieving construction project quality, represented by impact, relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability, through strategic planning as a mediating variable. Strategic planning was examined through its dimensions of implementation, mission and vision, environmental analysis, monitoring and evaluation, and objectives and policies within the Construction Sector of the Yemen Economic Corporation.
To achieve the study objectives, the researcher adopted the descriptive-analytical approach and developed a questionnaire as the primary data collection instrument. The questionnaire was distributed to a representative sample of leaders, engineers, and administrative, technical, and financial employees working in the sector. The final sample comprised 292 valid responses collected in 2026.
For data processing and analysis, the study employed the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS 28) to assess the data, conduct descriptive analyses, and examine the assumptions underlying multivariate analysis. SmartPLS was used to assess reliability and convergent validity and to test the study hypotheses.
The study reached several findings, most notably that the project management knowledge areas had a strong, positive, direct, and statistically significant effect on construction project quality. Project integration management was the most influential dimension, whereas project procurement management had the weakest effect. The findings also revealed a very strong, positive, and direct effect of project management knowledge areas on the adoption and enhancement of strategic planning practices. Furthermore, strategic planning had a positive and direct effect on construction project quality, with monitoring and evaluation emerging as its most influential dimension.
The structural model analysis further confirmed that strategic planning served as an effective mediating variable, transmitting and directing the indirect effect of project management knowledge areas on construction project quality. The findings also indicated no statistically significant differences in participants’ responses attributable to academic qualification, age, years of experience, or job title. However, statistically significant differences were found according to gender, in favour of male participants. The study discussed this finding in relation to the nature of engineering and fieldwork activities in the construction sector.
The study presented several recommendations, most notably the need to activate advanced project scheduling systems to integrate time management with actual project costs and adopt proactive procurement planning to mitigate price fluctuations. It also recommended developing a unified and participatory strategic vision and mission involving all employees, incorporating institutional sustainability standards into project design to ensure that project benefits continue at the local level after external funding ends, and integrating female engineering professionals into planning teams and technical offices to promote equal opportunities.
The dissertation defense was attended by a number of academics, researchers, and other interested individuals, as well as the researcher’s colleagues and family members.
