Global Bamboo Housing Program: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) -

Strengths -

• Bamboo is well known as an excellent building material as it is cheap, durable and beautiful. It also has a high resistance to earthquakes.
• Bamboo housing has been used traditionally in Latin American countries for centuries [only in Latin America?] and has shown tremendous potential to develop globally as a substitute for timber and other unsustainable construction materials such as steel or concrete.
• Bamboo is one of the most environmentally sustainable materials that grows in most tropical and sub-tropical regions. Bamboo is easily cultivated ,managed and harvested within a very short period of time compared to timber, usually three to six years, depending on species and end uses.
• Bamboo has the potential not only to provide homes for the homeless, but also to provide quick relief shelters in disaster affected areas
• Bamboo has also the potential to provide designer constructions (houses, cottages, offices, decorative elements) for the wealthy citizens of the world, i.e. it should not only be considered as a building material for the poor.
• International bamboo building codes regulations have been approved by ISO and other local bamboo building codes for some countries are also available or underway, facilitating a global approach to building with bamboo.

Weaknesses

• There are more than 1200 species of bamboo and only a few have been identified to be suitable for construction purposes, through practical experiences and scientific testing. However, there is more scientific testing and research to be done.
• In many parts of the world where housing is needed, proper preservation and use of bamboo for construction is still unknown.
• Building codes and standards for bamboo housing are limited to a few bamboo species and countries only.

Opportunities

• The current funding from BMF allows INBAR to enhance its housing program. The project will provide opportunities to interact with various stakeholders for cooperation and collaboration in the future and to develop a more focused strategy
• There are new opportunities to work with private sector, on bamboo housing at both the regional and global level.
• The limited number of demonstrations by INBAR and partners about the use of environmentally friendly bamboo for homes is now beginning to drawn the attention of donor such as Blue Moon Foundation (BMF).
• There are vast opportunities to work with UN-Habitat, UN Building and social housing foundations and other humanitarian organizations to promote bamboo for housing in the future.
• Bamboo could be one of the best solutions for disaster relief aid housing in many countries.
• Bamboo could be popular in the European market due to the high level of environmental concerns of the general public and this will promote engineered bamboo as a building material.
• Donors are gradually showing interests in funding a more industrialized approach to bamboo housing. Such a project would help to change a generally negative image of bamboo as a "poor man" construction material and would promote future market growth.
• Is there an opportunity due to the availability of new technologies and/or the possibility to build with a mix of materials including bamboo?

Limitations and Threats

• One of the biggest issues in promoting bamboo for housing is people's perception towards bamboo. Bamboo is still known as a "poor man's timber".
• Resource availability: not all bamboo species are suitable for construction. Bamboo properties vary with species and location. Therefore research and lab testing require a significant amount of resources and time. Moreover, although there might be interests and demands from many countries for bamboo housing, the limited availability of the specific bamboo for construction may inhibit the development of a large scale bamboo housing project.
• There is a serious threat that improper and non-scientific uses of bamboo for housing, and therefore quick deterioration of houses, may negatively influence the overall image of bamboo for building in the future. There is an urgent need to educate the public and building professionals at a global level and raise awareness to avoid such a threat.