Innovative Bamboo Building Technology now in Nepal
Safe and disaster-resilient homes for families in rural Nepal
“I am so proud of our new house. It’s bigger and much nicer than the old one”, 11-year-old Chadani smiles. “But what I like most is, that now my friends can visit me.” In the past, other children’s parents never let them enter the family’s poor shack. Chadani likes the design of her new home, and she also feels much safer – thanks to the disaster-resilient Cement Bamboo Frame Technology (CBFT) it was built with.
Nepali society is very hierarchical regarding caste and economy. One in two people lives without adequate shelter, and the dramatic housing situation is partly due to systemic inequality. Rising land prices, limited education, few income opportunities and poor infrastructure result in a lack of affordable housing for economically and socially disadvantaged groups. They often live in informal settlements on disaster-prone land and the make-shift homes made of little more than sticks and mud are neither safe nor durable. Especially in rural areas of the Eastern Terai in Province 2, where Chadani lives.
As one of Nepal’s least developed regions and one of the highest priority areas according to the Human Development Index (HDI), Province 2 shows an extremely high need for housing due to population density. With an average of 5.28 persons per household, people live densely packed in overcrowded, simple one-room structures without any doors or services, frequently damaged during earthquakes, floods and landslides, which happens regularly in this multi-hazardous country.
The desire for a safe place to call home
Every family dreams of living in a house, a safe place to lock, where they can confidently leave their children and belongings to go for work and earn some money. But for most disadvantaged families, that is nearly impossible. This situation is especially challenging for Dalits, the so-called “untouchables” who rank even below the lowest of the four castes according to Hindi tradition. Despite Nepal legally abolished the caste-system, Dalits are still socially marginalized. In the past, many of them were forced into bonded labor, but being freed, they lost their living space and source for food. Lacking access to education and job opportunities, they mostly live in substandard shacks in disaster-prone areas.
That’s why Habitat for Humanity, a longtime partner organization of the Hilti Foundation, has started in this region to build safe and disaster-resilient homes for families in need. Since its inception in 1997, bamboo has been the environmentally friendly and local building material of choice for Habitat Nepal. But the current project is the first in the country to use the Hilti Foundation’s innovative CBFT. “We want to show the great potential of this sustainable building technology,” confirms Tripti Mahaseth, Advocacy Research Manager at Habitat for Humanity.
The 4P Approach: people-private-public-partnerships
Adequate housing can change people’s lives. It has a positive impact on their safety and health, but also on their self-confidence and social integration. Affordable housing built with innovative technologies is important for social development. But to drive systemic change, it must be linked to other areas such as education, employment, health and social relationships within a community. Johann Baar, Director Affordable Housing & Technology at the Hilti Foundation, is certain: “If we want to drive social development more holistically, we need to look beyond the scope of our projects and find coalition partners to work on complementary aspects.”
Under this project, the new Sampanna Basti village will be the future home for more than 140 families, making it Habitat’s largest project site in Nepal to date. With its unique P4-approach, Habitat is also helping to build partnerships between people, public authorities and the private sector. Loans from microfinance institutions (MFIs) enable families to buy land. The local and provincial government work together to build infrastructure for the community – such as water, electricity, roads, and drainage – and Habitat Nepal partners with both, people and government, to construct houses using Hilti Foundation’s CBFT.
To create a sense of community, a user committee of only women from the future community leads the project implementation. With support from Habitat Nepal, they learn how to select vendors, make proper decisions, and manage a project. The families should also participate in the construction process so that they really “own” their future house. However, if they work on their house all day, they cannot earn money. That’s why Food for Shelter, an initiative originally launched during the pandemic, provides families with basic needs. This enables them to contribute “sweat equity” in the form of unskilled labor to the construction of their homes.
Next steps and long-term goals
The overarching goals are to create safe housing for low-income, marginalized families living in disaster-prone areas and to promote the acceptance of treated bamboo as a common building material by intensifying networks and partnerships. “Engaging youth in the project is one priority to build a sense of community and support future homeowners, such as single families or persons with disabilities.” Tripti Mahaseth explains. “Another is, engaging the private sector – as one of the 4P’s – to show the great potential of this sustainable bamboo housing technology.”
All along the bamboo value chain, there are economic opportunities – from bamboo farmers to the treatment centers, from vendors who sell the treated bamboo to masons who work with bamboo. Since the private sector might hesitate to invest in a technology not yet approved by the government, the Hilti Foundation’s bamboo experts from BASE BAHAY are supporting Habitat Nepal to work with the government on building codes for bamboo. A bamboo guideline will finally create certainty and stability in the industry.
Systemic change does not happen overnight, and Dalit families are not fully integrated yet. But they are participating: They are working with local authorities and NGOs, interacting with other communities, and have gained more confidence and self-esteem.
“Societal and transformational change take at least two generations,” declares Johann Baar. “It takes time because social development is also a cultural learning. For generations, it’s been this way, and now change is starting.”
Chadani’s mother is happy. With the new house, she feels more integrated because she can receive guests. “Now the chances for a good marriage are higher. It’ll be easier to marry off our children into good families,” she adds. There is hope for future generations.
Caste System in Nepal
Nepal is a patriarchal society and per Hindi tradition divided into a four-caste-system: Brahmins, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra. Brahmins are the highest and Shudra represent the lowest caste, within which Dalits, the so-called "untouchables”, rank at the very bottom or even below. Although Nepal has abolished the caste system by law, Dalits are still socially excluded. They have only limited access to education and poor job opportunities - especially indoors, as they are not welcome in higher caste homes. Therefore, they mostly live in disaster-prone areas on government land, in unsafe structures with little privacy and no access to infrastructure and services.
Habitat for Humanity Nepal
Founded in 1997, Habitat for Humanity Nepal has since assisted more than 70,000 households and built a network of valued local partners to implement its housing programs. Habitat Nepal takes a holistic approach to finding long-term housing solutions by forging stronger partnerships with government agencies, leveraging government resources, strengthening relationships with local partners, and pursuing growth through housing microfinance and market development initiatives.
Cement Bamboo Frame Technology (CBFT)
CBFT was developed by the Hilti Foundation. It is a disaster-resilient and environmentally friendly construction technology for social housing that uses bamboo as the only structural element. In the Philippines and now in Nepal, more than 1,000 homes for families in need have been built using this technology and together with Habitat for Humanity the aim is to take construction to a larger, if not industrial, scale. CBFT has also helped local farmers build a strong business as they contribute to the supply chain for treated bamboo poles.
Affordable Housing & Technology
Adequate housing is a human right, and a safe home is a prerequisite for social and economic development. Yet, an estimated 1.6 billion people worldwide live in substandard housing. This has a significant impact not only on their safety and health, but also on their economic opportunities and social inclusion. By developing innovative technologies and sustainable building concepts, the Hilti Foundation is helping to create safe and affordable housing that can serve as a starting point for a better life for people in need.