Many homes in rural areas cannot afford to have a clean concrete floor even when they can afford to put a small house structure. This leaves many rural households with mud floors that expose them unlimited hygienic and health hazards such as jiggers, rats, fleas, and many others.
Through Habitat for Humanity Uganda’s market systems program, a partnership was set up between Habitat for Humanity and EarthEnable, a company that has devised a technology that brings down the cost of flooring by 75% through the use of local materials.
EarthEnable developed a method of constructing as good as concrete and cement floors using murram, sand, clay, topped with a specialized oil film to low cost clean flooring to low income rural homes.
The Partnership:
Habitat for Humanity supported EarthEnable’s initial pilot phase in Uganda, specifically in Budondo Sub county, Jinja district by providing a loan fund, from which households unable to pay for floors upfront can borrow and receive clean low cost floors in their homes.
This is yet another intervention where Habitat for Humanity Uganda, works to provide access to affordable and decent shelter, by facilitating the market actors who provide the commercial solutions the people need.
Market systems Program through the Terwilliger Center for Innovation and Shelter is also currently partnering with Solar now and Technology for tomorrow to facilitate the development of more competitive, inclusive, and resilient housing market systems that can better serve the needs of low-income families. The ultimate goal of this program is to significantly reduce the housing deficit, thereby reducing poverty and increasing the quality of life for low-income households.