Building materials and shelter
This work has now been completed, but learning from these projects continues to inform our work. For the most recent information, please see our project news or read more about our Access to Services programme.
Eastern Sudan: Integrated Technology Programme
Award-winning Practical Action project highlights best practice
The building of poor people's abilities to raise their incomes and living standards in a sustainable way is an important underlying theme of Practical Action's work with impoverished communities. Practical Action Sudan's building materials and shelter project has assisted low-income brick producers in securing employment and improving their livelihoods.
Its successful work in helping people from Shambob, a village near Kassala town, join together to establish a co-operative society for producing and selling bricks won the prestigious Dubai International Award for Best Practices to Improve The Living Environment.
Recent developments
During 2001/ 2002 the building materials and shelter project supported the formation of a building materials producers' association, composed of three co-operative societies whose members were poor workers who used to be labourers for rich producers. The association's total membership rose to 741.
Practical Action Sudan offered technical, managerial and organisational training to members. Technical training included work on producing high quality bricks. Improved Shambob bricks helped set new national standards and influenced brick makers and consumers across the Kassala region. The association managed to produce and sell more than 1.2 million bricks during 2001/ 2002.
Practical Action Sudan's project also involved working with brick producers on testing and promoting alternative types of brick-firing kilns and the use of agro-waste as an alternative to wood fuel in the manufacturing process. In tests, 85 per cent of wood fuel normally used in making bricks was replaced with baggasse, the remains of sugar cane.
Other project achievements included promoting the availability of appropriate low cost roofing and supporting a women's society by improving their members' methods of producing building aggregates. Links to support the marketing of products were initiated with building contractors, non-government organisations and government departments.
Dissemination of information about the project included publishing two case studies internationally.
Case study: ShambobWhat a difference a few years can make
With the assistance of Practical Action Sudan, 115 Shambob brick makers formed a co-operative society that managed to boost production, sales and bring a large increase in the income of each member within two years. The Shambob brick workers, who each made a basic cash contribution to become members of the co-operative, received Practical Action training in management skills to run the society. Practical Action also provided training in brick production processes and techniques and helped the co-operative experiment with these and use of energy efficient fuels. Some village women gained an income through transporting water for the co-operative. The co-operative, which accepts men and women members, now produces one million bricks annually with demand still growing.
Osman Hummed, a founder member of the Shambob Brick Producers' Co-operative Society, said: "I not only gained an increase in income, I became a member of a commercially viable business; sharing in the profits and the decision-making." |
In 1998, the brick makers of Shambob village were very poorly paid. Their future prospects seemed equally poor. The harsh climate of the Kassala region makes farming difficult. Producing bricks to be bought by middlemen on behalf of wealthy merchants is one of the few remaining income-generating options.
Income from the project has led to a community centre being built and the payment of fees to enable local children to attend school.This work forms part of Practical Action Sudan's Eastern Sudan Integrated Technology Programme.
Building materials - western Sudan
Construction work raises women’s skills
Women have been helping shape their own futures in North Darfur. In a building materials project under the auspices of Practical Action Sudan, members of two women's groups moulded their own bricks and built training centres and stores for their activities. An improved, appropriate and affordable roof style design has been incorporated into one of the buildings to serve as a demonstration model for use in other construction projects.
