National Construction Industry Council (NCIC) and the German government through its development arm, GIZ, have signed a letter of intent to develop guidelines, codes and tools for the certification of sustainable building materials.
The agreement, signed on Monday in Lilongwe, is under the More Income and Employment in Rural Areas in Malawi (Miera) programme of the GIZ and will also focus on the design or implementation of construction works.
NCIC Chief Executive Officer Gerald Khonje said the two parties will carry out research on different sustainable building materials available locally, analyse their environmental impact and sustainability factors including energy sufficiency and carbon footprint.
“NCIC will be responsible for making all the logistical arrangements and inviting relevant stakeholders to meetings and workshops in consultation with Miera,” Khonje said.
According to Khonje, the parties also seek to engage relevant third party stakeholders to gain insights into their expertise and involve them in the development process for wider acceptance and adoption.
- Advertisement -
He said the agreement is in line with the Construction Industry Environmental Management Strategy for Malawi, launched in 2015, and the 2018 gazetted regulations on the use of sustainable construction materials that direct building developers and contractors to use sustainable materials for all projects.
“By mandating the use of sustainable construction materials, the government is taking a proactive approach towards addressing issues such as deforestation and carbon emissions,” Khonje said.
GIZ Miera Team Leader Charlotte Chirimuuta said the partnership is important looking at the scale of construction in the country where there is low urbanisation rate but which may shoot up in future.
“So it is very important that we find ways of constructing sustainably in the future to conserve resources but still maintain an economy that flourishes with construction,” Chirimuuta said.
- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -
She said financial resources for entrepreneurs and availability of resources for them to construct their own buildings are some of the challenges in the country as many construction materials come from outside the country.
