Nepal turns to bamboo to rebuild earthquake-hit schools

Nepalese workers build a temporary school from bamboo in Kathmandu after the earthquake last year

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Nepal is听turning to bamboo, nicknamed 国产视频渧egetable steel国产视频�, as it rebuilds听homes and schools after last year国产视频檚 devastating earthquakes听which left hundreds of thousands homeless.

国产视频淏amboo is a great material. The biggest enemy (in a quake)听is weight so bamboo is perfect because it is light, flexible and听very strong,国产视频� said Nepalese architect Nripal Adhikary.

国产视频淚t can be as strong as steel but it国产视频檚 much more ecological听because it doesn国产视频檛 need energy to produce. People call it听国产视频榲egetable steel国产视频�.国产视频�

Twin earthquakes in April and May 2015 killed almost 9000听people 国产视频� a third of them children 国产视频� and destroyed nearly a million buildings in the Himalayan听nation. Donors have pledged $4.1 billion for reconstruction but听rebuilding has been delayed by a political crisis.

More than 50,000 classrooms were destroyed or damaged and one million children were left out of school in the immediate aftermath. Hundreds of temporary learning centres were set up in the weeks after the disaster. In the worst-hit areas, 90% of schools were destroyed.

In October, the urgent retrofitting of the 75% of school structures that are unsafe in Nepal was recommended by the World Economic Forum国产视频檚 Global Agenda Council on Risk and Resilience recommended听

Adhikary, speaking by phone from Kathmandu, said the听government had recently approved the use of bamboo to rebuild听schools and was expected to approve its use for reconstructing听homes.

Bamboo is ideal for rebuilding in Nepal国产视频檚 mountainous听terrain because it grows widely and is easier to transport than听heavier materials, said Adhikary, Nepal国产视频檚 national coordinator听for the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR).

Building with bamboo is also about 50% cheaper than听with other materials.

Destroyed classroom at Janajyoti Higher Secondary School in Gairmudi village in Dolakha Picture: UNICEF/Karki

Technological advances have improved its durability, he听added, while new systems for joining bamboo lengths mean it can听be used to build larger span structures than in the past.

INBAR is working with Nepal国产视频檚 government and other听organisations on a $800,000 pilot project using bamboo to build听150 homes and 10 schools which they hope other agencies will听replicate.

Government ministers, aid agencies and building experts听attended a workshop in Kathmandu recently to discuss bamboo use听in reconstruction programmes.

Nepal is home to 54 bamboo species with coverage estimated听at 63,000 hectares. Experts say its sustainable use will also听help boost local employment and economies.

Earthquake engineering expert David Trujillo said interest听in building with bamboo in quake-prone regions had grown since a听1999 quake in his native Colombia.

While many newer masonry buildings collapsed, the older听bamboo buildings withstood the tremor. Afterwards there was a听big effort to rebuild with bamboo.

Trujillo, who worked on the reconstruction effort in听Colombia, said bamboo was a very sustainable material which grew听extremely fast, reaching 25 to 30 metres in only six months.

A World at School and Gordon Brown, the United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education, have been leading the call for a platform to fund Education in Emergencies 国产视频� which includes children out of school due to conflicts, natural disasters and health crises.

Global听partners are now working together to develop solutions to be discussed and agreed ahead of the World Humanitarian Summit in May.

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