Project supervision for diaspora clients
Independent attendance at your Nigerian building project, with measured progress, dated evidence and a written payment recommendation before each transfer.
Building in Nigeria while living somewhere else
You are asked to send money. You are sent photographs. You are told the work is going well. Between those three things and a finished building, there is a great deal that can go wrong, and almost none of it is visible from abroad or malicious by design.
Most of the money lost on diaspora construction projects is not stolen in a single act. It leaks: a slow site, a re-purchase of materials already bought, a claim for work that was done three months ago, a specification quietly reduced, a variation nobody approved. None of it looks like fraud from a photograph, and all of it is measurable.
That is the service. An independent quantity surveyor in Nigeria, attending your site, measuring work done, valuing it, and reporting to you in writing before you send the next payment.
What you receive, month by month
- A dated site visitAttendance at your project, with the stage of work recorded in writing.
- Photographs with descriptionsNot a gallery. Each image captioned with what it shows and where it was taken on site.
- Measured progress valued against your BOQWork done expressed as a value, with the quantities behind it stated.
- The claim compared to realityIf the contractor has submitted a valuation, you see the gap and the reason for it.
- Quality and specification notesWhere workmanship or materials fall short of the drawings and specification.
- A payment recommendationWhat to pay, what to hold, and what must be fixed before either happens.
- Decisions flagged earlyAnything that needs your instruction, while there is still time for the cheap option.
The four visits that cannot be repeated later
Before foundations are poured
Reinforcement size, spacing, cover, depth and the ground as found. Once concrete is in, none of it can be verified without breaking it.
Before a slab is poured
Reinforcement, conduits, pipe sleeves and the fall of the surface. Every defect here becomes a leak or a crack later.
Before the roof is covered
Truss spacing, bracing, purlins, timber quality and treatment. A roof that is covered wrongly looks perfect from below.
Before plastering
Electrical conduit, plumbing pressure testing, wall alignment and blockwork quality, all of which disappear under a coat of render.
Missing these is the most common avoidable regret in Nigerian construction. The inspection costs a visit; the defect costs a demolition.
How the arrangement is set up
Nothing informal, nothing open-ended.
A short brief
What is being built, where, at what stage, who is on site, and what has already been paid.
A written scope and fee
Number of visits, what each visit produces, response time for reports, and travel costs itemised.
Introduction to the site
A brief, factual introduction of the practice to the contractor or site manager, so the arrangement starts as procedure rather than suspicion.
Reports on a schedule
Delivered before each payment date, so the report informs the decision instead of explaining it afterwards.
A closing inspection
At practical completion, with a defects list and comment on outstanding work before final payment.
Where diaspora clients are based
We work with clients across the main diaspora markets. If your country is not listed, the arrangement is unchanged, only the time zone differs.
Diaspora client questions
How often should you visit my site?
It depends on the stage and the pace of work. A common arrangement is monthly during active construction, with extra visits at key stages that cannot be inspected later: foundation reinforcement before concrete, slab reinforcement before pouring, roof structure before covering, and services before plastering. Those four visits are worth more than twelve random ones.
How do I know the photographs are real and current?
Photographs are dated, described, and tied to a signed report that states who attended and when. It is also worth saying plainly: photographs can be staged, and any photograph can be old. That is why the report values measured work rather than illustrating progress, and why we tie visits to the payment cycle so the evidence arrives when it is needed.
Can you buy materials or pay people for me?
No. We do not hold client funds, make payments, procure materials or act as an agent. It is a deliberate limit: a surveyor who also handles money cannot be independent. We verify and advise; payment stays in your control, which is the source of your leverage.
My relative is managing the project. Will this cause a problem?
Handled properly, it improves the relationship, because it replaces suspicion with a document. The framing matters: the surveyor is protecting everyone's money, including the relative's reputation. Where a relative is doing the work honestly, independent measurement is the best defence they have.
What time zone are you in and how do we talk?
West Africa Time, which is one hour ahead of London and five or six hours ahead of North America. WhatsApp voice notes are usually the most practical channel for diaspora clients, with scheduled calls for decisions that need discussion. Reports are written, so nothing depends on you being awake.
You cannot be there. Somebody should be.
Tell us about the project and what you have already paid. We will tell you what can be established from here, and what it will cost.
We read everything sent to info@peterch.org. Replies go out by WhatsApp — include a working number, with country code, in your first message.