Bucabuma
2026 - 2029
Project partners:
- Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)
- University of Nairobi (UoN, Kenya)
- Addis Ababa University (AAU, Ethiopia)
- University of the Witwatersrand (WITS, South Africa)
- Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT, Germany)
BUCABUMA (Building Capacity in Circular Natural Building Materials using Frugal Digital and Traditional Engineering Innovations) is an international collaboration funded under the EU Intra-Africa Academic Mobility Scheme, part of the EU–Africa Global Gateway. The project strengthens higher education, research, and skills development in sustainable construction across four African countries.
BUCABUMA brings together a transdisciplinary network of universities in Ghana (KNUST), Kenya (University of Nairobi), Ethiopia (EiABC/AAU), South Africa (WITS), and Germany (KIT) to foster student and staff mobility, collaborative research, and knowledge exchange. The project focuses on circular natural building materials, combining locally available resources such as clay, laterite, bamboo, and agricultural by-products and fibrous residues with digital design and fabrication tools.
Through joint curricula, hands-on training, and applied research, BUCABUMA builds practical skills in climate-responsive construction, digital fabrication, and entrepreneurship. By bridging traditional knowledge with contemporary technologies, the project supports low-carbon development, climate resilience, and inclusive economic growth, while contributing to scalable, locally adapted solutions for Africa’s rapidly urbanising construction sector.