Fiji explores bamboo for cheaper, greener homes

Bamboo-based construction in Fiji could cost approximately $1,300 per square metre, offering a potentially affordable and climate-friendly alternative to conventional building methods.

The estimate was highlighted during Fiji’s World Bamboo Day celebrations at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva yesterday, where research findings and draft national guidelines under the Fiji Bamboo for Adaptation and Mitigation Project were formally handed over to the Ministry of Fisheries and Forestry.

Senior Development Advisor to the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Deborah Begbie said the estimate would provide builders with a basis to compare bamboo construction with conventional building methods in Fiji.

“One of the reports estimates that bamboo-based construction can be delivered at approximately 1,300 Fijian dollars per square meter,” she said.

Acting Permanent Secretary for Fisheries and Forestry Simione Tauvoli said the research was timely as Fiji faced a growing need for affordable and climate-friendly housing.

He said more than 140,000 people lived in substandard housing, while Fiji could need about 30,000 additional homes by 2030.

“This will require us to introduce new and innovative building materials which are more affordable and more climate-friendly,” Mr Tauvoli said.

Bamboo could contribute to the housing sector while creating income opportunities for farmers and processors.

The two-year project produced six research reports covering bamboo’s mechanical properties, resource availability, cultivation, harvesting, treatment, processing, construction technologies and women’s participation in forestry and construction.

It also produced the draft Fiji Bamboo Management and Harvesting Guidelines and supported the development of Fiji Bamboo Construction Guidelines.

Pacific Regional Director of the Global Green Growth Institute Sakiusa Tuisolia said the project had helped build local expertise and strengthen the evidence needed for bamboo to be considered a recognised construction material.

Mr Tauvoli said the research would provide a foundation for developing a Code of Practice for bamboo under the Fiji Forestry Act 2025.

The next step is to translate the research into practical action to develop bamboo as a safe, sustainable and viable industry while creating livelihoods and economic opportunities.