Zimbabwe Approves Hempcrete for Housing Initiative

*Hempcrete and other natural materials will help replace traditional mud huts. Photo courtesy of Hemp Today*

By Hemp Today

The government of Zimbabwe sees a role for hemp in construction after securing a $63 million line of credit from an African fund to develop eco-friendly buildings.

National Housing and Social Amenities Minister Daniel Garwe said the financing will help the country to meet its target of raising 220,000 housing units by 2025, indicating hempcrete, precast concrete slabs, reclaimed steel, and ferrock will be used in the initiative.

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The financing is from Nairobi, Kenya-based Shelter Afrique, a pan-African financial institution that supports the development of the housing and real estate sector in Africa. Zimbabwe is a shareholder in Shelter Afrique, also known as Company for Habitat and Housing in Africa.

New technologies

“Government migrated from only use of brick and mortar strategies to the application of new technologies in housing delivery,” Garwe said. “We developed some technologies, consulted countries abroad where these technologies have been applied, among them Dubai and South Africa.”

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The government is starting the process of building a factory to turn out green building materials with separate funding from Shelter Afrique, according to the minister.

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