OUR INSIGHTS
East Africa stories
“What can I do?”: Roderick Obeja on timber, engineering, and building a better future
In 2022, structural engineer Roderick Obeja made a quiet decision that would profoundly reshape his career.
At the time, he was already deeply involved in East Africa’s construction sector. He was running a small engineering practice in Nairobi — Lotino Engineering — while also working with Localworks in Kampala as a construction manager. But it was a two-week residential programme in Nairobi, hosted by the Climate Smart Forest Economy Program (CSFEP), that opened up a new career path.
Bamboo for Change
In Narok County, Kenya, a small company is envisioning the future of bamboo products. GreenPot Enterprises, hopes to create nearly half a million jobs, restore over 100,000 hectares of degraded land across 16 counties in Kenya, and provide low-carbon household products--including construction materials–-all with bamboo.
2024: A Year of biobased construction innovations in Africa
Read three inspiring stories of progress from BOXA, Growing Timber Connections, and Easy Housing
Image credit: Growing Timber Connections
Built by Nature Prize Winner Wolf Bierens on Rethinking Housing in East Africa: A Conversation
In October, 2025, CSFEP partner Built by Nature awarded its prestigious annual Prize to six global projects. Among the winners was Biobased Construction East Africa member, Easy Housing. CSFEP reached out to Wolf Bierens, Easy Housing Founder and CEO, to find out more about what it meant to him to win the Prize.
Sustainable forestry and Easy Housing: Building a home for everyone
Read about the benefits of timber homes and sustainable forestry in East Africa.
Image credit: Easy Housing
Busibo and Namabaale Teachers’ Villages
Across Uganda, the lack of teacher housing is a serious challenge. So when Uganda-based architecture and construction firm Localworks embarked on a project to build 52 residential units in Busibo and Namabaale in 2023-24, it aimed to reimagine not just the buildings themselves, but Uganda's entire approach to housing essential workers.
East Africa insights
Reflecting on the February Biobased Construction East Africa Coalition Workshops
There is no shortage of ambition in East Africa’s biobased construction sector.
Across the value chain — from forest growers to product innovators — small businesses are already solving problems. What they rarely have is space to solve them together.
In February, CSFEP brought members of the Biobased Construction East Africa Coalition and other supporters together in Kampala and Nairobi to create exactly that space.
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The Research Behind the Rise of Timber
At an August 2025 Global Learning Community session, Dorian Tung from FPInnovations in Canada and Schalk Grobbelaar from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, shared how research institutions are shaping the biobased construction industry of the future.
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What Kenya’s lifted logging ban could mean for the future of regenerative forest economies in East Africa
When President William Ruto announced the lifting of Kenya’s six-year logging ban, reactions were mixed. For some, it was a long-awaited signal that the forestry sector, and the jobs tied to it, could finally breathe again. For others, it raised a familiar fear: would renewed logging undo years of forest recovery?
How to Finance the Next Generation of Climate Smart Builders in East Africa
Throughout recent CSFEP coalition meetings, entrepreneur conversations, and investor calls, we’ve heard five consistent themes about how the finance sector could better support small businesses in the region. Learn more in the article.
Unlocking the Timber Transition
When the Biobased Construction East Africa Coalition launched its first three action groups in Kenya, the goal wasn’t to produce quick wins. It was to test, and learn from, different pathways to building a regenerative forest economy within a complex forest-to-frame ecosystem.
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Broader trends and learning reports
What the Global North can learn from the biobased building industry in the Global South
Read about three key lessons from leading experts in biobased construction from the Global South. Panelists included Leander Moons (OMT Architects, Kenya), Boogie Setiawan (Bamboo Village Trust, Indonesia), and Marcus van der Hoven (Mass Timber Technologies, South Africa).
Sustainable forestry and Easy Housing: Building a home for everyone
Read about the benefits of timber homes and sustainable forestry in East Africa.
Image credit: Easy Housing
