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D. H. M. Aquino et al.
be deferred to the person who will reside in the house. During the reconstruction
phase, however, the information developed and disseminated by these civil society
organisations as part of the Build Back Safer programme only contained guidance
for timber-framed construction. No guidance on bure housing reconstruction was
released.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs (P2), which is tasked to oversee that indigenous
Fijian villages and their affairs, corroborates the stand of the civil society groups.
This is because the Ministry is tasked with promoting the indigenous culture and
traditions. They, however, had very little involvement in the reconstruction process.
Navala village residents, however, are unanimous in the belief that the bure is
more resilient than a contemporary house. Drawing this belief from their experience
in living in bures for decades, they claim that it was the first time that bures in their
village sustained severe, irreparable damage (G1). Normally, strong winds would
just cause the bure to lean towards one side and just had to be pushed back. They
further add that in the event of a cyclone, “the bure will not kill you, he will give
you time to find shelter”. This pertains to the bure’s gradual, as opposed to sudden
and instantaneous, failure in the face of severe loads. The high-pitched roof design
also enables the occupants to take shelter in the roof by moving towards the centre
underneath the roof ridge.
16.6.2 Recognition in the Building Code
Proposition 2: There is a lack of recognition of indigenous construction design,
methods and materials in building codes and standards
The National Building Code of Fiji (1990) governs the design and construction of
structures in Fiji. It is largely based on Australian and New Zealand building codes
and referral standards. There is also the Home Building Manual of Fiji (Ayyar 1990),
which is a simplified version of housing construction. None of these standards and
publications are compatible with indigenous construction.
Firstly, materials used for indigenous construction such as thatch, bamboo,
mangrove timber, smoke-treated local timber, are not recognised in the code.
Likewise, indigenous housing structural designs are beyond the scope of the Home
Building Manual. The maximum roof pitch covered by the manual is 25 degrees,
whereas the roof slopes of a typical bure are at least 45 degrees, or even steeper.
The roofing structure is also prescribed to be of a beam-and-rafter construction and
having lightweight, presumed to be corrugated iron, cladding. This is as opposed to
the bamboo matted underlay of the bure’s thatched roofs.
While these standards are not mandatory for general rural housing construction at
present, code compliance is required for all aid projects and this includes post-disaster
housing provided by aid agencies. This means that, in the absence of sufficient proof
of concept on the structural integrity of a bure house, they cannot build such housing
structure for aid recipients.
D. H. M. Aquino et al.
be deferred to the person who will reside in the house. During the reconstruction
phase, however, the information developed and disseminated by these civil society
organisations as part of the Build Back Safer programme only contained guidance
for timber-framed construction. No guidance on bure housing reconstruction was
released.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs (P2), which is tasked to oversee that indigenous
Fijian villages and their affairs, corroborates the stand of the civil society groups.
This is because the Ministry is tasked with promoting the indigenous culture and
traditions. They, however, had very little involvement in the reconstruction process.
Navala village residents, however, are unanimous in the belief that the bure is
more resilient than a contemporary house. Drawing this belief from their experience
in living in bures for decades, they claim that it was the first time that bures in their
village sustained severe, irreparable damage (G1). Normally, strong winds would
just cause the bure to lean towards one side and just had to be pushed back. They
further add that in the event of a cyclone, “the bure will not kill you, he will give
you time to find shelter”. This pertains to the bure’s gradual, as opposed to sudden
and instantaneous, failure in the face of severe loads. The high-pitched roof design
also enables the occupants to take shelter in the roof by moving towards the centre
underneath the roof ridge.
16.6.2 Recognition in the Building Code
Proposition 2: There is a lack of recognition of indigenous construction design,
methods and materials in building codes and standards
The National Building Code of Fiji (1990) governs the design and construction of
structures in Fiji. It is largely based on Australian and New Zealand building codes
and referral standards. There is also the Home Building Manual of Fiji (Ayyar 1990),
which is a simplified version of housing construction. None of these standards and
publications are compatible with indigenous construction.
Firstly, materials used for indigenous construction such as thatch, bamboo,
mangrove timber, smoke-treated local timber, are not recognised in the code.
Likewise, indigenous housing structural designs are beyond the scope of the Home
Building Manual. The maximum roof pitch covered by the manual is 25 degrees,
whereas the roof slopes of a typical bure are at least 45 degrees, or even steeper.
The roofing structure is also prescribed to be of a beam-and-rafter construction and
having lightweight, presumed to be corrugated iron, cladding. This is as opposed to
the bamboo matted underlay of the bure’s thatched roofs.
While these standards are not mandatory for general rural housing construction at
present, code compliance is required for all aid projects and this includes post-disaster
housing provided by aid agencies. This means that, in the absence of sufficient proof
of concept on the structural integrity of a bure house, they cannot build such housing
structure for aid recipients.