Proper payment in a construction contract is very essential and it is one of the major factors thatrndetermine the fate of a construction project; whether to be successful or not. The thesis is mainlyrninterested in identifying the major payment problems, their causes and consequences in publicrnbuilding construction projects that are being undertaken in the city of Addis Ababa, starting fromrnthe year of 2001 to 2004 E.C. Payment problems in the construction industry may differ fromrndelayed payments to partial certification/under certification of payments and none payment of sumsrndue. The research identified which of those problems are there in the public building constructionrnprojects, along with their causes and the consequences they had on the projects, using questionnairernas a main data collection instrument and informal interviews which were carried out with differentrnprofessionals among the respondents of the questionnaire. Accordingly, payment delay and partialrnpayment are identified to be the major problems. The employerâ€™s bureaucratic payment system, thernconsultantsâ€™ bias towards the employer and the contractorsâ€™ poor progress in their works are foundrnto be the main causes of the problems. Delay in project completion time and cost overrun are foundrnto be the major consequences of the problems.rnKey words; Construction payment, payment delay, partial payment, payment system, workrnprogress, payment certification, project success.