37º IAHS World Congress on Housing: - Universidad de Cantabria

XXXVII <strong>IAHS</strong><strong>World</strong> <strong>Congress</strong> on HousingOctober 26 – 29, 2010, Santander, SpainCODE: 307CORE HOUSING PROVISION FOR LOW-INCOME PUBLICSERVANTS IN NIGERIA USING STABILISED EARTHBRICKSA. A. Taiwo and O. ArayelaDepartment of Architecture, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria.e-mail: abraham_taiwo@yahoo.comKey Words: Core Housing, Stabilised Earth, Bricks, Public Servants.AbstractThe high cost of building materials in Nigeria has encouraged the low and middle incomeearners to look for alternative sources of building materials locally. This study looks at the useof stabilised earth bricks in the provision of core housing for low-income public servants inNigeria. A comparative analysis on the use of sandcrete blocks and stabilised earth bricks forthe construction of a proposed core housing unit was carried out and the result showed 35.9%reduction in construction cost. It was noted that the stabilised earth bricks can be used invarious parts of a building depending on the percentage of cement added to the earth tostabilise the bricks. Recommendations were then made as to how the stabilised earth brickscan be used to meet the housing needs of the low-income public servants.37º <strong>IAHS</strong> <strong>World</strong> <strong>Congress</strong> On Housing Science 172