oa Civil Engineering = Siviele Ingenieurswese - Labour-intensive road construction and maintenance in Africa: an introduction

Abstract

In Africa, national programmes of labour-intensive road construction and maintenance are in progress in Kenya, Botswana, Malawi and Lesotho. Pilot projects have been initiated in many other countries. The paper provides a summary of the theoretical basis of labour-intensive construction, the scale and scope of work in progress, the major innovations and variations experienced during implementation, the major reasons for the success of the work, the major pitfalls to be avoided and the essential strategy to achieve success. The paper closes with a consideration of the prospects for the future.