Adobe bricks
Effective September 20,2022, a land owner who chooses to build a house with adobe bricks can officially obtain construction permit and this applies to town and rural areas under some conditions.
Instructions that were issued by Rwanda Housing Authority(RHA) to amend previous instructions of August 2022.
On September 20, the new instructions specify the kind of buildings that qualify for adobe bricks.
The bricks are only allowed for single floor residential houses not exceeding 200 square meters, and without basement in accordance with districts and city of Kigali Master plan.
Buildings of public use like churches, mosques and commercial buildings are not allowed in this category.
In the past, Kigali city struggled to deal with illegal construction which predominantly used adobe bricks as main construction materials.
These instructions specify that whoever wishes to construct a house with adobe bricks will do so, if only they have construction permit.
For all the buildings in adobe bricks, refurbishment will equally allow use of the same construction material.
Despite allowing these construction materials however, the instructions clarified that the house will have a foundation of stones and cement.
Meanwhile, the Rwanda Housing Authority will issue trainings for masons who wish to take up construction of adobe houses who will have to be certified. They will also be encouraged to form cooperatives.
All houses that will be built in adobe bricks will be recorded in a database for follow up.
In these instructions, RHA gives indications on how to dry adobe bricks, quality of a good adobe bricks among other construction technics of adobe bricks.
The instructions mainly intends to bridge the gap of residential houses.
In Kigali only, around 373,000 additional households will need to be accommodated in at least 310,000 houses from 2017-2032.
