Bamboo Eco-Housing Project in Nepal

INBAR successfully launched a bamboo Eco- housing Project in Nepal. It is a social housing project that was supported financially by Global Environmental Facility- Small Grant Programme (GEF/SGP) and INBAR. The project was implemented in Kanchanpur district, the Western Terai region of Nepal. The main target group of the project was "Kamaiya" recently liberated bonded labour. The project has components of bamboo housing, bamboo based enterprises, energy production and resource rehabilitation. RES Nepal, an NGO, is an implementing agency for the project.

Bamboo houses were pre-fabricated by Himalayan Bamboo (INBAR affiliate) in Hetauda who acted as a sub-contractor of RES Nepal. INBAR provided an in-house training regarding pre-fabricated bamboo house construction at the premise of Himalayan Bamboo. The company has already supplied 18 pre-fabricated houses and the project has been successfully concluded in December 2005.

The prefabricated bamboo house consists of 9 panels. Each panel is made with flattened bamboo in wooden frame. Flattened bamboos are woven to the both sides of wooden frame in such way that the inner parts of the bamboo are exposed towards the exterior of the wall. The prefabricated panels are then assembled in the light concrete foundation made with stone and concrete with about 40-cm depth. After the assembly of the panels in the foundations, all the walls are plastered with cement mortar. The roof consists of Zinc tins that were secured with bamboo trusses.

All the bamboos and woods were treated with vacuum pressure method using CCA for wood and 3% Boron solution for bamboo poles and flattened bamboo. The total area of a house is about 30 square meter. One house costs around US$1000.00

Himalayan Bamboo is a private company that currently produces high quality bamboo flooring and exports them to European Market. However, the company wishes to diversify its bamboo products and would like to link with community bamboo project. The company is willing to enhance its capacity in bamboo housing sector to supply both for public and private sector.

RES Nepal, the implementing NGO (INBAR affiliate), has already established a bamboo nursery in the project area with community. They have planted bamboo along riverside that will be used for the community welfare later. Various training regarding income generation, improved stoves and others have already been conducted.