CommunicationPublished on 15 August 2024

The modern, eco-friendly brick

Bern — Cities across Africa are experiencing unstoppable growth. Through its PROECCO project, the SDC is supporting sustainable urban development in the Great Lakes region. The project centres on a technology for manufacturing modern bricks. In the Rwandan capital of Kigali alone, the project has saved 115,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions since it launched in 2013.

By training skilled workers, the SDC is supporting local economic development and the sustainability of the modern brick industry. — © PROECCO

Newcomers in the city build the sort of houses that cannot withstand extreme weather conditions in very densely-populated neighbourhoods.

Daniel Wyss, PROECCO project manager at SKAT Consulting

The inclusive transformation of informal settlements supported by PROECCO, using locally-produced and sustainable building materials, has increased the resilience of urban populations to natural disasters, which are being further exacerbated by climate change.

Nicolas El-Hayek, PROECCO officer at the Swiss embassy in Kigali