A sustainable livelihoods approach to broadening the use of bamboo technologies in the construction of social infrastructure

Project aim

To enhance the capacity of poor communities and low income households to sustainably develop and maintain integrated bamboo based livelihoods

Countries

• India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh

Activities

• Consideration of potential for, and the effects on livelihoods of, cultivation of bamboo at a local level
• Evolution of construction technology to include larger buildings and other structures such as schools, health centres, community centres and bridges
• Assessment of earthquake resistance of the building system, and further development of a building code
• Making corrugated bamboo mat board - a material ideally suited to cost effective construction and developed by project partner IPIRTI - available to the to the poor

Outputs

• A market-based livelihoods study (in association with INBAR)
• Demonstration second-generation bamboo buildings in India (2-storey), Sri Lanka and Bangladesh
• Training programmes for State building centres and NGOs· Demonstration bamboo footbridge
• Full scale earthquake testing· Draft national building code in India
• Commercialisation of corrugated bamboo mat board
• Dissemination of results and findings through various media, and a programme of seminars across the region