Towards Safer School Construction: A community-based approach

The focus of this manual is on the process of community- based school construction. It should supplement technical guidance on appropriate construction materials and techniques, such as UNESCO’s 2013 Guidelines for Earthquake-Resistant Non-Engineered Construction. This manual considers community-based school construction in depth, supplementing the broader Guidance Notes on Safer School Construction published in 2009 by the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) of the World Bank and the Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE).

This manual shows how community-based approaches to safer school construction can do more than just provide safer school buildings in hazard-prone places. It can also:

• Raise awareness about hazards within communities
• Build local capacity for safe construction practices
• Strengthen a culture of safety within and around the school
• Increase a sense of community ownership of the school
• Ensure community values are incorporated into school designs