Locally Available Geotextile for Maintaining Unpaved Roads in Developing Countries to Enhance Community Resilience

Abstract

Road authorities in developing countries recognize the need to maintain unpaved roads in rural areas using local resource based approaches rather than by attempting to meet international standards. The authors have developed a novel road maintenance technique, that we call “Do-nou”. Since 2006, we have demonstrated this technique in Asia, the Pacific, Africa and Latin America. Do-nou can be classified as a geotextile used to reinforce the shear strength of soil using only plastic crop bags, which are widely available in developing countries, and unskilled local labor. After some modification, the technique was also applied to the maintenance of unpaved roads on the clayey ground and to the construction of retaining walls for road embankment in flood-prone areas. It was demonstrated that it was practical for the communities to maintain unpaved roads in rural areas when equipped with the Do-nou technique, thereby enhancing community resilience. The Kenyan Government has recognized the Do-nou technique in its road strategy plan and has invested in training its youth on this technique for employment promotion.