DOST-FPRDI launches DIY Bamboo Shelter
August 3, 2015
The Department of Science and Technology’s Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI), along with partner groups, inaugurated last 29 June 2015 the Do-It-Yourself Bamboo Shelter to help meet the housing needs of Typhoon Yolanda victims. Developed with support from DOST Region 8 and funded by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD), the shelter was launched at the DOST Grounds, Government Center in Palo, Leyte.
“The DIY Bamboo Shelter,” says FPRDI researcher Dr. Rico J. Cabangon, “is an easy-to-build, eco-friendly, visually appealing, and low-cost house. Our plan is to make it a semi-permanent or permanent shelter for those who have lost their homes during Typhoon Yolanda and other calamities. The advantage of the bamboo house is that it can be disassembled and moved to safer grounds in case there is an upcoming super typhoon.
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“Measuring 24 square meters, it has a living room, kitchen, bedroom, and ready electrical and water connections. It can be easily carried by a six-wheeler truck when packed and can be put up in three to four days by four workers. It is likewise a green technology as most of its materials come from renewable sources,” Dr. Cabangon adds.
According to DOST Region 8 Regional Director Edgardo Esperancilla “Aside from making housing more accessible to the poor, the DIY shelter can also help develop the bamboo industry in the region since there are many bamboo plantations in the northwestern part of Samar and in some parts of Leyte.”
So far, two private companies have already expressed their desire to partner with the DOST Region 8 office in mass producing the bamboo shelter. (Rizalina K. Araral and Consuelo Alarcon, 28 July 2015)
