This house on a char (river sandbank) near Faridpur,
Bangladesh is built on posts to cope with flooding
Another rural house in the same country is built on a soil
plinth, to lift it above flood waters
Factors that influence disaster performance of informal rural housing
+ vernacular rural housing that has been well
maintained has been proven to be resistant to
disasters of considerable magnitude
+ there is a wide use of local construction practices,
using materials such as timber, bamboo frames or
earth materials, which, if properly constructed can
stand up well to earthquakes and moderate storms
+ cultural traditions often have influenced building
practices making these adequate to climatic
conditions and maximising the use of resources.
+ there often is a tradition of mutual aid and strong
community organisation which can be used to help
communities prepare for disaster, and to organise
relief and reconstruction
+ some rural communities have early warning systems
for disasters as well as temporary measures to make
their houses more disaster-proof
- some of the natural materials used, especially soil
and thatch, and sometimes bamboo and timber, are
not very durable and easily affected by humidity or
insects, which weakens their performance
- if good traditional materials become scarce, people
have to make do with alternatives that may be less
resistant
- “modern” materials like cement, steel and corrugated
iron sheets are making their way into rural areas, yet
if the skills to use them properly are lacking, this can
lead to poor quality housing too
- rural residents do not always have the means to
maintain their houses well, nor to replace them when
they deteriorate; this puts them at risk.
- while rural residents are often aware of some of
the risks their sites pose (especially with respect to
regular events like flooding), they are less aware of
their exposure to other hazards
in some cases these resources are being over-
exploited and becoming scarce. In many countries,
rural housing has a rich tradition, with designs
and technologies that have been passed on and
improved upon by generations of rural builders.
There are usually good reasons for the way rural
houses are built, and some of these may derive
from previous experiences with disasters; these
are not to be ignored. There is ample evidence
of self-help and mutual aid in rural building, and
many communities also have builders specialised in
specific housing components.
How to learn from the housing sector?
Ideally, learning should take place at the local,
national, and international level, and involve
different actors at each.
Local level learning should involve staff of the
reconstruction agency that has decided to work in
the location, representatives of the target group,
and potential other partners, including the local
authority.
Where can you get the information from?
• Joint inter-agency housing assessments. It is
important to include expertise to understand
local main construction typologies, land and
material uses, major resources, related services
such as water and energy, gender issues. Visual
checks and enquiries.
• Key housing actors in that location, such as
housing co-operatives and groups working on
land and property rights.
• Baseline surveys in this particular area
(statistics on production of low-cost housing,
local building practices, data on previous
disasters)
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