SOCIETY

Rebuilding Nepal After the Earthquake

In April 2015, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck Nepal and devastated parts of the country tucked high in the Himalayas.
18 July, 2016
At least 8,000 people died in the Nepal earthquake, with more than 14,000 injured as a result of the remors. In the aftermath, the Nepalese counted more than a quarter-million houses that were damaged or destroyed.
As they continue to rebuild, the Nepalese are choosing aluminium as a key construction material. According to the Himalayan News Service, the demand for aluminium products has doubled since the earthquake. That is especially true in rural areas where demand has never been seen at the level of Nepal's urban locations.

At first, relief workers focused on temporary housing that could be built from the existing resources found nearby – often from structures the earthquake had wrecked. Volunteer architects created easy-to-execute plans so that shelters could be built by ordinary people, since the terrain and road systems made it difficult for initial resources and crews to arrive. Cardboard tubes, aluminium sheets, bamboo frames and other materials were incorporated into those designs for buildings that take a few days to build. In fact, some shelter kits arriving from the IKEA Foundation can be assembled in just four hours, and use a variety of materials including aluminium woven into the roofing to help control temperature.
Images: Better Shelter. Photographer: Jonas Nyström
These award-winning Better Shelter units are designed with natural disaster victims and refugees in mind, and an emphasis on creating safe spaces that restore privacy and dignity to traumatized families. They do not require additional tools and instead take advantage of IKEA's experience with flat-shipped products. Besides the aluminium fiber used to help reflect heat from the roof in hot weather or control for heat loss in colder temperatures, the shelters – designed for five people – include a solar panel kit capable of charging and running an LED lamp for four hours after dark, or powering up a mobile phone by using a USB port. The 10,000 Better Shelter units shipped last year included those sent to Nepal for medical and other uses.

Images: Better Shelter. Photographer: Jonas Nyström
But when the Nepalese turned toward rebuilding their permanent homes, they moved away from choices like traditional wood and opted for doors, windows and other components made of aluminium. That holds true of both residential and commercial buildings, including those among the more than 20,000 government centers that were partially damaged or destroyed. Industry representatives tell news media that the cost and availability of wood became prohibitive as customers looked for window and door options. They account for about 90 percent of purchases, with just 10 percent using aluminium for partitions.

Customers are attracted to aluminium's durability and strength, particularly after experiencing such catastrophic losses. That is one reason that sales personnel in Nepal urge their neighbors to choose high-quality aluminium products with a proper width for construction. The earthquake also attracted many companies to the region, with varying degrees of price and quality reflected in the construction products they sell. Although the stricken Nepalese buyers are price sensitive, they are advised to avoid products with less than 1 mm thickness because they are flimsy, easily broken and aren't likely to last.
Most of the reconstruction relies on aluminium products from China, but Thailand, India and France are among the top countries to provide products destined for Nepal's big rebuilding effort. While there is no way to restore the lives lost – or the historic architecture destroyed by the quake – the availability of smart, sustainable temporary solutions and permanent construction products is helping to move Nepal forward.
Banner image: Caritas