After nine days of intense collaboration, the gatehouse now stands – solid, impressive, and nearly complete. Students and local craftsmen worked side by side, planning, building, and toiling late into the evenings.
What remains will now be completed by the local community – but the result is already visible: a shared structure and a powerful statement for sustainable construction in Ghana.
In Accra, we had the opportunity to present our project to the German Ambassador, Daniel Krull. Together with our partners from ABC and HSRM, we shared updates on the construction progress in Guata, discussed planned expansions, and highlighted the importance of bamboo and clay as climate-friendly building materials.
A valuable exchange that helps raise the project’s visibility on a political level as well.
A special part of this construction phase is the clay workshop with ISOPTERA. Together, we’re learning how local soil can be turned into a strong and breathable building material – entirely without cement, but with plenty of experience and teamwork.
As we mix, tamp, shape, and fill, one thing becomes clear: working with clay is physically demanding – and it brings people together. Participants get hands-on experience with the material and develop a real feel for its properties.
This workshop is more than just technical training: it connects theory and practice, people and place – and makes the sustainable vision behind our building concept tangible.
Every morning, we head to the construction site together – passing through beautiful landscapes at sunrise. Once we arrive in Guata, we have breakfast on-site before diving straight into work: sawing, drilling, adjusting, and refining. The structure is steadily taking shape.
Based on a modular “Bamboo Construction Kit” developed in Jonathan Neulen’s bachelor thesis, the new gatehouse is emerging piece by piece – our first building made of bamboo and clay, which will later serve as both an office and a reception area.
What makes us especially happy: the atmosphere is fantastic. There’s focused work, plenty of laughter, and open learning – from and with one another. The collaboration with the local team is not only effective, but truly enriching.
After the kick-off in Accra, we arrive in Somanya and finally at the Guata project site – for some, a return to familiar ground. The excitement is high: finally on-site, ready to get started.
Vincent from ABC Ghana enthusiastically guides us across the site. Together, we get an overview of the existing structures, discuss the schedule for the coming days, and prepare ourselves for the construction site.
Now, it’s time to get to work.
After a productive start to the weekend – with shopping and taking care of necessary formalities – the second Ghana expedition with Hochschule RheinMain begins.
Before heading to Somanya on Monday afternoon, we visit the INBAR office and participate in the “Bamboo Knowledge and Skills Exchange Workshop 2025”.
The focus is on professional exchange about bamboo as a building material for climate-friendly construction, its local processing, and the next steps in the construction of the training center in Guata. The students come with plenty of questions and fresh energy – the excitement for the upcoming construction phase is clearly palpable.
As part of our fundraising campaign “Bamboo Modular House” that started in December, nearly €4,000 have been raised – and it’s already making an impact: The prototype of the modular house in Guata is being built with bamboo, clay, and combined efforts.
Thank you for joining us on this journey and making the project possible!