Bamboo Economy Initiative

In the developing countries, majority of the population continue to rely on natural forests for firewood, charcoal and construction materials. As deforestation becomes widespread, there is need for quick action to provide alternatives for people that currently rely on these forest products.

Bamboo trees are easy to grow, and they have capacity to provide the growing population with firewood, charcoal and construction materials. All that farmers need is to be provided with training and right varieties of seed for the bamboo trees.

Farmers will use bamboo trees as firewood for cooking and for sale, for constructing their houses and housing for their livestock, and for making charcoal for subsistence and commercial purposes. Hence, this initiative has potential to stop deforestation.

Deforestation is always on the increase in the developing countries where people have no alternative sources of energy or materials for construction. For example, recent studies claim that about 90 percent of the population of Malawi does not have access to electricity as a source of energy. Firewood and charcoal from the natural forests is the main source of energy for these people. They use these natural forest products in their own home and also export some to urban areas as their business. This use of natural forest products is not sustainable, as trees are not being replaced after they have been cut down. Along with this deforestation also comes other forms of degradation such as soil erosion.

Growing and using bamboo trees as alternative source of firewood, charcoal and construction materials is the solution that is provided by this initiative. Farmers should be trained, and right varieties of the bamboo trees should be provided for them. In the long run, policies can be developed to ban the use of natural forest products as firewood, charcoal and construction materials. This will have good impact on the environment, where natural trees will regenerate and restore natural habitat for the biodiversity.

The first beneficiary from this initiative will be people in the rural areas, who currently have no alternative sources of firewood, charcoal and constructional materials. 

The bamboo tree will provide them with energy for use by their households. They will also have materials which they can use for constructing good quality houses and livestock housing. 

This initiative intends to encourage the growing of bamboo trees which will be used as follows:

1. Firewood and charcoal for use by the households and for sale.

2. Timber, pole and other constructional materials for people's houses and livestock housing.

NB: This will replace the use of natural forests as energy and constructional materials.

Currently I am working with a local organisation called Care Foundation, where we have been using bamboo trees as firewood and for construction of livestock housing.

My initiative has potential to change the market and enable broader positive impacts. Bamboo trees will be produced and used for commercial purposes. Products in the value chain include firewood, charcoal and construction materials or furniture.

Currently I am doing small-scale experiments with a local, district-based organisation having a team of 10 members of staff.

With adequate funding, together we can train 500 people in Malawi and help them establish their commercial bamboo tree gardens.

In five years time we can train up to 2,000,000 people in Malawi and neighbouring countries not only in establishing their bamboo gardens, but also in adding value to the bamboo trees to make charcoal, furniture and building materials.

Indicators of progress will include:

1. Building farmers' capacity to establish and manage bamboo tree farms.

2. Training various participants in the value chain to commercialise the bamboo industry.

3. Installing machinery for making value-added bamboo tree based charcoal, furniture and construction materials.

I am working with local, district-based organisation of 10 members of staff. We are all part-time, working as volunteers because our organisation does not have any money to pay for our salaries.

We have a diversity of skills because some are trained as community development workers, primary and secondary school teachers, and agricultural economists.

I am an agricultural economist.

Our team comprises six ladies and four men. The programs manager is a lady.

We share work equally.

We also empower women in the community with social economic skills through our loans and savings groups and self help groups.

Solve should provide financial support for the trainings and materials for this project.

1. The products of this project will need to be distributed to the consumers, including exports to other countries.

1. Appropriate technology will be required to process raw bamboo into various products.

We would like to partner with the Ministry of Agriculture, who should help in training farmers in propagation and management of the right varieties of bamboo trees. The Ministry of Industry and Trade will be another partner, who will help find profitable markets for bamboo tree farmers.

Qualified refugees would be allowed to work in the furniture and construction industries, where bamboo trees would be used both as raw materials and as final products.

Bamboo trees are safe to grow and provides sustainable economy in that the bamboo crop plant needs minimal inputs and care.

This project will help reduce extra work for women and girls who currently have to travel long distances to fetch for firewood and charcoal for domestic use. The bamboo economy will help make fuel energy locally available to poor households, hence benefit both women and girls. Some women and girls will also find work opportunities in the bamboo tree industries.

This project will help save natural forests from deforestation because people will diversify to bamboo tree products for their energy, furniture and construction structures.

This project will help meet the high demand for fuel energy and materials for making furniture and construction materials.