Of African Countries on Local Building Materials and Technologies
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JOURNAL OF THE Volume1 Number 1 April 1989 ISSN 1012-9812 of African Countries on local building materials and technologies CONTENTS Foreword 3 Background 4 How to overcome the high cost and scarcity of ordinary Portland Cement 5 Ghana Blended cements from bauxite waste 8 Low-cost binder using lateritic soils and limestone 10 Kenya Standards and specifications for fibre-concrete roofing tiles 11 Promotion of wide-scale adoption of fibre-concrete roofing tiles 11 Cost comparison between fibre-concrete roofing tiles and other roofing materials 11 Malawi Fired-clay bricks 13 Sand-cement tiles 13 Performance standard specifications for sand-cement roofing tiles 13 Cementitious materials from rice-husk ash 14 Performance tests on rice-husk-ash/ lime binder 14 Mauritius Lime production 15 Pozzolanas from bagasse ash 15 United Nations Centre for Nigeria Human Settlements (Habitat) Use of agricultural residues for production of building materials 16 Uganda Lime production .14\' Limestone deposits ~~~ Fired clay bricks 18 ~J United Republic of Tanzania Low-cost binder from natural Commonwealth Science pozzolanas 19 Council (CSC) Events 21 NETWORK JOURNAL Foreword The economic recovery of Africa must remain at the forefront of international agendas as it is of the efforts of African governments themselves. Despite economic conditions which continue to deteriorate, and the continu ing inadequacy of the external financial flows which Africa needs for recovery, economic recovery programmes are being undertaken or planned by most African governments. And they are fInding that, to build their economics anew, they have literally to build. The rehabililation or creation of infrastructure, the development of new industries, the promotion of exports and the provision of shelter and public amenities are key elements in such recovery programmes, and all require construction and building materials. The adequate supply ofbuilding materials is thus critical to Africa's efforts at economic recovery. Without this, recovery is even more uncertain. Over the years, the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) has treated this issue as a priority, in view of the precarious situation ofthe building materials industry in most developing countrie and its central importance to national development. Through its Research Division, the Centre has assisted developing-country governments in remedying the situation of the building materials industry, while its Technical Cooperation Division has conducted field projects amply demonstrating possible improvements. There is now a vast weight of experience from which to argue that the building materials sector offers opportunities for lessening import dependency or even for attaining national self-sufficiency by increased indigenous production. Yet a serio~s lack of technology and know-how for commercialisation of local production has meant that such opportunities have rarely been taken. While the limitations of technology transfer from industrialised to developing countries may be substantially the cause, there is much that developing countries can do to transfer technology among themselves. The establishment of effective mechanisms for technology collaboration at regional and sub-regional level and between neighbouring countries would bring the achievement of basic targets in indigenous production capacity, particularly in the building materials sector, within grasp. The Commonwealth Science Council (CSC), like UNCHS (Habitat), has long realised the significance of the building materials sector and the need to promote local capacity through sustained support to national insti tutions in several areas of technology development. In this connection, a workshop was organised by the esc, in collaboration with UNCHS (Habitat), in Kampala, Uganda, in June 1985, aimed at establishing collaboration among African countries in research and development for the promotion of local building materials. The subsequent efforts of the CSC and UNCHS (Habitat) to sustain that aim have resulted in the existence of an active and continuously expanding network of African countries collaborating over local building materials technology. This Journal marks an important milestone in the activities ofthe network which gives it its name. By promoting the development of indigenous technological capacity through the flow of information among participating countries, we feel sure that Network Journal will make a real contribution to building a new Africa, and that it will be relevant also to other interested countries and institutions worldwide. We wish it every success. Dr ArCot Ramachandran Shridath S Ramphal Executive Director Secretary-General UNCHS (Habitat) Commonwealth Secretariat. 3 JOURNAL OF THE NETWORK OF AFRICAN COUNTRIES Background Local raw materials for construction is an area of human survey oflocal raw materials for housing construction, commissione'd endeavour that relates to the socio-economic and socio-cultural by the Commonwealth Science Council as Phase I of the African settings ofa country. particularly in the area ofshelter construction. Regional Project on Local Building Materials. and national case It is in the area of shelter that a dichotomy appears to exist studies on manufacturing technologies, standards and specifications between sheller as a basic neccssity for mankind, on thc onc hand, on local building materials, commissioned by UNCHS (Habitat) and shclter as an area in thc devcloping countries which is as part ofthe inputs to a workshop on standards and specifications encumbcrcd by problems of affordability, availability, durability. on local building materials which was organized jointly by the habitability, reliability and vulnerability in relation to the pertinent African Regional Organization for Standardization(ARSO).the materials of construction or the buiJt-fonns. Commonwealth Science Council (esC) and the United Nations In pursuancc of its objcctive tocnhancc indigenous capability of Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat), in Nairobi, Kenya, individual nations to gcnerate and usc science and technology for March 1987. Information from both the CSC-sponsored surveys thcir economic, social and environmental developmcnt, the and the UNCHs...sponsored reports were to form the nucleus of Commonwealth Science Council, in collaboration with the United the Journal of the Network of African Countries 0/1 Local Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat), established in Building Materials and Technologies, of which the present Kampala. Uganda, in lune 1985. an African Regional Project on edition is the first issue. Local Building Materials and Technologies. To date the African Broadly, the Journal will, interalia, disseminate infonnation on Project comprises II collaborative research network. the Network the activities of the Network, particularly aimed at low-cost ofAfrican Countries on Local Building Materials and Technologies. innovations in local building materials and technologies. Infonnation consisting of Cyprus. Ghana. Kenya. Malawi. Malta, Mauritius, in the fonn of technical papers, illustrations, news items and Sicrrll Leone. Uganda. the United Republic of Tanzania and announcements of activities on local building matcrials and Zimbabwe. which are represented country-wise by national co· associated areas, from the private or public sector, from within and ordinators. Activities of the network have so far altraeled the outside the African region, will also be welcome. participation of various international and regional agencies and The Local Building Materials Project, the Network and the organizations with special interest in the field of local building lournal. are envisaged as playing thc vital role of a link in co materials and. also. the participation of a substantial number of operative techno-scientific endeavour between a number of non-Commonwealth countries of the African region. international and regional agencies and organizations and various The Jounlal for the Network ofAfrican Counlries on Loca' national institutions and individuals in the area of local building Building Maleria's and Technologies, as a possible medium of materials and technologies in theAfrican region both now and for communication and infonnation exchange for the Network. several years to come. originated in two recent activities of the Network, namely, a Rogers W'O Okot-Uma Contributions to the Journal Department of Civil Engineering This journal welcomes infonnation or articles on low~cost The Polytechnic innovations in building materials technology. Infonnation in the UniverSity of Malawi fonn oftechnical papers, i11ustrations, news items and announce Malawi ments ofevents can be sent from individuals or institutions in the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering private or public sector, from within and outside the Africa University of Malta region. All correspondence on the loumal should be addressed Malta to the editors: Mr. Frank Tackie. Research and Development School of Industrial Technology Division. UNCHS (Habitat). PO Box 30030. Nairobi. Kenya. University of Mauritius or Mr. Rogers W'O Okot-Uma, Conunonwealth Science Counci~ Mauritius Marlborough House, Pall Mall, London. SWlY 5HX, UK. Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRJ) The views expresscd in this journal do not necessarily refleci Lagos either those of the United Nations or the Commonwealth Nigeria SecretariaL The reprinting of any of the material in this publication is welcome, provided that the source is