Woodless construction: an overview
Practical Action
The average cost of a woodless building is similar to that of a the flat roofed building using good
quality wood, except that it is very hard to find good quality wood anymore. If a family makes its own
bricks and provides its own labour one can obtain a house for almost no monetary input, and in some
instance the services of a trained mason are recompensed with food, not cash. The cost of
construction varies from one locality to another, depending on the local price of raw materials, the
availability of water, but as well, varying ethnic attitudes about work and productivity.
Clients are attracted to
Woodless Construction
because it avoids the difficulty
and expense of having to
obtain (often poor quality)
wood, needing replacement
sometimes within a couple of
years. They recognise that
woodless buildings are much
cheaper than those built with
non-local materials. They
appreciate the excellent
thermal comfort in both cold
and hot seasons and also value
the fact that a woodless house
cannot catch fire – (a common
occurrence in traditional
housing). Many people
consider it prestigious to have
a Woodless Construction
house, and people are proud of
what they can achieve with
their own new skills and local
and sustainable resources.
DW organises a variety of
activities to ensure that the
public is aware of the potential
of Woodless Construction,
using the press, radio and TV
and having open days for
visits. But it is the local
builders who play the most
important role in spreading the
techniques. DW provides on-
going technical support after
training, and helps local
Figure 8: Vault building on corbelled supporting side walls gains
time and structural safety.
builders to form themselves into registered Economic Interest Groups that give them a legal base to
take on contracts.
The promotion of Woodless Construction in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger won the World
Habitat Award in 1998.
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