Transforming Africa's Bamboo

Investing in Impact

P4G awarded the partnership with US$585,317 in grant funding.  

Bamboo, which is an abundant but underutilized resource in Ethiopia and Kenya, can be a game-changer in the carbon-intensive building sector. The Transforming Africa’s Bamboo partnership will pioneer a forest-to-market business that substitutes fossil-based materials such as steel and concrete with bamboo to enable large-scale production of organic, renewable and recyclable products.  

Transforming Africa’s Bamboo will use high-performance biomaterials and an intensified manufacturing process that halves processing time, cuts energy consumption by more than 30%, and reduces costs by more than 61%, while producing strong and durable construction materials. The partnership will use analytical technology and artificial intelligence to overcome quality variability. 

Through advisory support, P4G will assist the partnership in addressing hurdles of bankability and risk management, while also exploring carbon feasibility, forest readiness, and tools for measuring impact. Additionally, P4G’s National Platform in both countries will help facilitate market entry and systems change to adopt national bamboo policies and support an enabling environment. 

This partnership can be key in meeting growing building needs in both countries, while helping to reduce the emissions that usually accompanies that construction.