Made in Africa Learning from Carpentry Hand-tool Projects

About this book

This book examines the practical lessons drawn from three approaches to local production of carpentry hand-tools, as an alternative to expensive imports. Based on a wide range of VSO and IT project experiences in East and Southern Africa, it discusses the reasons for success and failure: first, in the training of practising informal sector carpenters; and secondly, of students in educational institutions, in making individual carpentry hand-tools for their own use, or for sale. It evaluates local mechanized carpentry hand-tool production units. The conclusions and practical guidelines should be of relevance to development workers, project managers and training instructors working in similar projects in other countries.

Contents

Part 1 Introduction: an historical perspective; re-introducing tool making; barriers to success; a gender perspective; the text. Part 2 Why make hand tools: why carpentry?; approaches to making tools; summary. Part 3 Hand tools and practising carpenters: practising carpenters; carpenters' tools; carpenters' own experience in making tools; the VSO experience; conclusions; lessons learnt. Part 4 Making tools in educational institutions: benefits; youth polytechnics, Kenya; government training centres, Malawi; NGO training centres, Zimbabwe; government training centres, Zimbabwe; acceptability; tool making and educational justification; conclusion; lessons learnt. Part 5 Hand tool production units: rapogi youth polytechnic; bande tool makers; WECO tool production; unit; itawoga tools; COMET, Zambia; conclusions; lessons; learnt. Part 6 Conclusions and future work: skills transfer; appropriateness; acceptability; sustainability; combined programmes; which tools?; self employment; further work by IT and VSO.

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