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Habitat initiative cabo delgado
Cabo Delgado, Mozambique
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Dwellings developed based on the traditional building technique.

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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Category:
education
Phase:
in use
Design:
Ziegert | Roswag | Seiler Architekten Ingenieure
Updated:
12 October 2011
introduction

The Aga Khan Foundation in Mozambique has completed construction on eleven village school buildings in the country’s poor Northern region. The schools were built using natural resources, and were built as pilot projects for an improved, more permanent construction style that incorporates and develops both local craft skills and locally-available building materials.

Basic school type inKoko / North view

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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Local craftsmen mounting roof battens.

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cultural and social context

Residents of the region live in simple earthen huts which become uninhabitable and collapse after just five to eight years. They dream of owning more permanent, modern brick and concrete houses, even though they know the humidity regulating earthen homes are cooler and more comfortable inside. Homes built using modern materials heat up rapidly in summer, are highly prone to mildew, and are generally uncomfortable and unhealthy.

Traditional hut constructed of wood, bamboo and earth using wattleand- daub technique; grass roof.

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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Veranda

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The average lifespan of a traditional house is around five to eight years. Rising damp, termites and leaking roofs all gradually destroy the structures.

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materials and building techniques

In order to combat deforestation, the construction system is designed to use as little wood as possible. Instead, the buildings are constructed using the earth-block method, which can also be found in the region. Roof constructions, doors, windows and other details are built of bamboo. Borax, a natural salt, is used to protect the materials against parasites.

Collecting and mixing earth.

image: Roswag Architekten | © all rights reserved
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Earthen block production.

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Natural stones used where available to build foundations; cementstabilised earthen blocks used in other areas.

image: Roswag Architekten | © all rights reserved
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Cement-stabilised earthen block foundation.

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earth and climate

Original Situation: Local Residents’ Poor Housing Conditions
Mozambique’s poor Northern region is predominantly populated by villagers living in simple mud huts. These houses have a lifespan of only five to eight years, due to the shortcomings of the construction method and the lack of materials necessary to make the houses more durable.

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image gallery
roofing

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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de Junho pilot project / South view.

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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roofing

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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construction

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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Close-up view of bamboo truss and palm thatch.

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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interior

image: Ziegert | Roswag | Seiler Architekten | © all rights reserved
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Basic school type inKoko / North view.

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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Basic school type in Bangala / Closeup view.

image: Paula Holtz | © all rights reserved
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Basic school type in Machova / Classroom.

image: Roswag Architekten | © all rights reserved
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technical drawings
Research of traditional vs. improved construction techniques.

image: Roswag Architekten | © all rights reserved
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section

image: Ziegert | Roswag | Seiler Architekten | © all rights reserved
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details

image: Ziegert | Roswag | Seiler Architekten | © all rights reserved
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details

image: Ziegert | Roswag | Seiler Architekten | © all rights reserved
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Location
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Keyword:
craftsmanship (33)
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earth (66)
bamboo (68)
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