Peru update: Spanish translations in hand as further partnerships develop

Editorial by Rekha Thawrani OBE, Global Director, NEC Contracts.

In August 2024, NEC announced its agreement with the Peruvian government that the NEC4 suite of contracts will be translated into Spanish, suitable for use in the region. I am happy to announce that this work is well underway, and we look forward to their publication in the coming months.

The Spanish versions will enable greater use of NEC contracts for infrastructure development in Peru. The country has a very challenging infrastructure environment and many works are planned, including rail, hospitals and schools, to improve this situation. By using NEC to deliver these works, the government believes it will see the best possible working practices and collaborative outcomes, as evidenced by use of NEC on the Lima games in 2019 (see NEC case study).

ICE agreement

I was pleased too with the announcement in October 2024 that the Peruvian Ministry of Economy and Finance had also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Enabling Better Infrastructure programme of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE 2024).

The programme brings together specialists to support governments in putting best-practice principles for strengthening strategic infrastructure planning into practice. This, alongside the agreement with NEC Contracts, shows the Peruvian government’s great commitment to best practice for the future of infrastructure investments. 

Spanish guidance

To support Peru’s dedication to best practice, we will also be translating the associated NEC4 guidance documents and training materials. This demonstrates NEC’s commitment to ongoing professional development and the need to ensure those operating the contracts are sufficiently equipped with the knowledge and support needed to achieve project excellence.

Sofía García, deputy director of business and trade and head of infrastructure at British Embassy Lima and Sarah Bunting, the embassy’s director of business and trade, delivered a pre-recorded session at the NEC Asia Pacific Conference in November 2024. They discussed the benefits of collaboration for national procurement, the journey so far and the future road map for NEC’s use in the region.

We look forward to sharing further updates with the NEC community across the world. 

References

ICE (2024) Peruvian government to work with ICE’s Enabling Better Infrastructure programme to strengthen country’s infrastructure plan. ICE press release 24 October, https://www.ice.org.uk/news-insight/media-centre/press-releases-list/peruvian-government-to-work-with-ice-enabling-better-infrastructure-programme.