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Emergency Trust Fund for Africa
News article8 October 2018

Innovative compressed earth bricks boost Gambia's construction industry

Innovative compressed earth bricks boost Gambia's construction industry

RFI recently dedicated a series of articles on the work carried by the EUTF and ITC in the Gambia with the YEP programme. Here is an extract of the second reportage.

A new construction technique is being rolled out in The Gambia in the hope it will help create more jobs. The method, which has been imported from India, fabricates blocks and bricks using soil from the local area. It aims to be more environmentally friendly through the sourcing of materials. The initiative is being funded by an EU project with the goal of creating opportunities for the youth.

“The blocks are made with natural add, which is abundantly available all over the world,” says Alpha Omar Jallow, the construction manager at Earthworks Construction. “In The Gambia we have the right material, the right soil, to do compressed stabilised add.” The “add” is the cement or lime used to stabilise the mix of soil.

Earthworks Construction is an offshoot company of the Sandele Eco Retreat near Kartong, a village in the south west of the country. Many of its buildings were made from the Compressed Stabilised Earth Brick (CSEB). The resort is nestled in the forest by a beach and aims to offer visitors upmarket lodgings with minimal environmental impact.

Sandele was originally developed in 2004 and the owners wanted to find the best sustainable design and techniques for construction. Jallow researched the CSEB technique and then visited India for a course. It gave him further instruction on producing the blocks.

To read the entirety of the article, visit RFI website

Source: RFI/Daniel Finnan

Details

Publication date
8 October 2018
Region and Country
The Gambia
Thematic
Greater economic and employment opportunities
Partner
ITC - International Trade Center

Programmes in the region