Bamboo plantations critical to sustain use in Ghanaian housing

Bamboo plantation development will be the future guarantee in supplying resources for industrial processing of the product in Ghana, according to the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR).

Country Director, Michael Kwaku, says the current natural cover of bamboo in the country is not enough to sustain industrial demands.

He tells Luv News the Forestry Research Institute of Ghana of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (FORIG-CSIR) must lead in the plantation development to ensure sustainable access to raw materials for planting.

He believes the Institute “has the capacity in terms of research fields to set up bamboo nurseries and then multiplying them and supplying them to interested people. The labs are available for them to do bamboo tissue culture for instance”.

Mr. Kwaku however hopes the FORIG gets the requisite funding to train more scientists to go into bamboo tissue culture.

“That is the surest and fastest way of getting available raw materials for plantation development to support the industries in Ghana,” he observed.

The INBAR liaises with international organizations to source funding to support research.

Ghana’s scientific community has been sharing ideas on technologies and challenges involved in the efficient and sustainable use of bamboo for housing in Ghana.

The 1^st Bamboo Colloquium was held in Kumasi under the second phase of government’s action plan on the use of local raw materials in the building and construction industry.

Mr. Kwaku believes increased public awareness will increase use of bamboo in housing.

“We should be able to put more demonstrations or samples of bamboo housing to be able to let the public appreciate it; then they will see the qualities vis-à-vis that of the wood and then be able to buy into it, especially in ecotourism,” he said.

Good technologies in bamboo housing are expected to enhance economic growth and protection of the environment.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh