Integrated Evaluation of the Impediments to the Adoption of Coconut Palm Wood as a Sustainable Material for Building Construction

Zaheer Abbas Kazmi,Mahmoud Sodangi

doi:10.3390/su12187676

Abstract

Coconut palm wood is commonly regarded as a sustainable building material. Nonetheless, its adoption as a green building material by the construction industry is limited, particularly in West Africa. This paper analyses the impediments to the effective adoption of coconut palm wood in residential building construction. The research data was collected from literature reviews, expert-based surveys, and semi-structured interviews with specialists from the construction sector, African Timber Organization, governmental institutions related to forestry and construction, university professors, and researchers in the areas of sustainable building materials and construction. Thirteen crucial impediments were identified and an integrated evaluation of the impediments was conducted using the Interpretive Structural Modelling (ISM) technique to examine the hierarchical structure of the relations between the impediments. A further technique, Cross-impact Matrix Multiplication Applied to Classification (MICMAC), was used to categorize the impediments from a driving to driven perspective. This categorization provides a unique profile for the impediments, which is different from that of conventional evaluation techniques for evaluating impediments. The findings of this paper offer useful guide to practitioners and policy makers in formulating effective policies, regulations, and standards that will promote the development and wide adoption of coconut palm wood in the construction industry.

Highlights

West Africa is the region with the largest number of countries and the most populous one in Africa, with an estimated 400 million people in 2020
Quite a number of researchers in the field of construction [26,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53,54] have used the interpretive structural modelling (ISM) and cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to classification (MICMAC) techniques to examine the hierarchical structure between the impediments to a given system or process
While the merits of adopting coconut palm wood in building construction have been outlined in this study, the development of the material in West African region has been quite slow

Summary

Introduction

West Africa is the region with the largest number of countries and the most populous one in Africa, with an estimated 400 million people in 2020. Despite the incessant socio-political turmoil, insecurity and socio-economic challenges bedeviling the region, countries in the region face grave housing deficits [1]. Of the 15 member countries in the region, Nigeria presents the greatest housing deficit (17 million housing units) as the country accounts for more than half of West Africa’s population [2]. Poor urban planning is hampering urban expansion through limited supply of land and infrastructure. Multiple land tenure regimes, and inadequate land administration and governance systems contribute to land tenure insecurity and the high costs of urban land. High construction costs make housing unaffordable to the majority of low and middle-income households

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Conclusion