June 2009

An NZAID funded school that is a prototype for 80 others being rebuilt in the earthquake and tsunami affected provinces of Solomon Islands has received a citation in the World Architecture Community Awards.

Ngari School on the island of Gizo in the Western Province of Solomon Islands was constructed in 11 weeks by the local community.  It was designed by the voluntary organisation Emergency Architects Australia for the Solomon Islands Ministry of Education and Human Resource Development. The school is a model for schools that need to be replaced or repaired after the earthquake and tsunami of April 2007.

The building is made using locally sourced materials. Timber is cut on site and the windows are made from hand woven fibre. Efforts have been made to reduce the amount of resources needed to construct the buildings. Creating an air vent gap around the top of outer walls resulted in using 25 percent less wood than would normally be used for constructing a similar building. The air gap also has the added benefit of cooling the classrooms in the Pacific heat. The school has been designed to better withstand earthquakes and other disasters.

The World Architecture Community is an independent global forum and extensive database of architects from countries throughout the world. The community is linked via their website, which acts as a reference point for architects worldwide.

The aim of the World Architecture Community Awards is to highlight and promote remarkable architecture projects that might otherwise remain unnoticed by the international public. Novelty, originality and creativity are all major criteria for the awards.

In an interview with Radio New Zealand International, Emergency Architects Solomon Islands Project Director, David Kaunitz, recognised the significant support received from the local community to construct the new Ngari school building.

“[There was] tremendous community help, often 30 volunteers every day, building the building and carrying timber to the site. The building was built in 11 weeks, which is quite an incredible amount of time for it to be built anywhere, let alone a place where every piece of timber has to be hand cut, hand hammered and holes drilled by hand” Mr Kaunitz said.

Infrastructure officers were also given on-the-job training while building Ngari School. The officers will monitor the construction of the remaining schools by the local communities.

The construction of Ngari School is part of the wider Recovery Action and Rehabilitation Project, which aims to rebuild 80 schools in the Western and Choiseul provinces. NZAID has committed up to NZ$5 million to the project that is also supported by the European Union and the Solomon Islands Government. The project is being managed by UNICEF (the United Nations Children’s Fund).

A majority of the school buildings in the Western and Choiseul provinces were destroyed or damaged by the effects of the earthquake and tsunami. The lack of proper maintenance and/or construction prior to the disaster also contributed to the damage. Approximately 18,250 students have had their schooling significantly disrupted. UNICEF tents are currently being used as temporary school buildings in several areas.

For more information about the Recovery Action and Rehabilitation Project email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Source NewZAID No. 58 |