A Multidimensional Circular Economy Policy Assessment Framework for Construction Sectors

The construction industry generates approximately one‐third of global waste, yet the design and institutional maturity of circular economy (CE) policies in the construction sector vary substantially across countries. This study develops and applies a multidimensional CE policy assessment framework to evaluate the design maturity and formal institutional arrangements of national CE policies relevant to the construction sector. The framework consists of six dimensions and 24 indicators, operationalised through standardised scoring rubrics developed from expert interviews. Dimension weights were established using the analytic hierarchy process based on expert consensus. A systematic review of national and regional policy documents published between 2015 and 2025 was conducted to apply the framework across 18 countries, comprising nine developed and nine developing economies. The results indicate that developed countries consistently achieve higher mean scores across all six CE policy dimensions. The most pronounced gaps are observed in regulatory instruments and legal mechanisms (26.44%), policy scope and regulatory coverage (22.78%) and economic and market‐based instruments (21.95%), whereas enforcement and compliance mechanisms show the smallest disparity (5.13%). These findings highlight areas where policy design maturity differs most between developed and developing contexts, particularly in relation to regulatory scope, policy coherence and institutional design. By emphasising policy design maturity rather than outcome‐based effectiveness, this study offers a transparent, replicable and policy‐relevant assessment tool to support benchmarking and to inform future policy development towards circular construction practices.