Percentage targets can be useful, but they are only a starting point. They do not necessarily show whether local firms have gained the technical systems, specialist skills, equipment, and commercial experience required to compete independently.
A stronger approach would measure capability development over time: which activities have moved into local delivery, which competencies have been transferred, and whether local firms can retain and expand those capabilities beyond a single contract.
The objective should be durable participation in the value chain. Compliance should therefore be judged not only by spend or ownership, but by the capability that remains after the project is complete.
AFR