The Brick Industry in Ghana: Historical Contexts, Advocacy and Way Forward

Abstract

The paper looked at historical antecedents of bricks industry in Ghana, its challenges and how governments and individuals have supported bricks advocacy in Ghana. The properties of clay minerals for structural products are tolerable among Ghanaian clays and though composite formulations have improve the suitability of the clay material for bricks production, its advocacy for construction in Ghana has not been fully pushed for. Through historical and descriptive methods, the study revealed that the brick industry in Ghana have suffered challenges such as poor management, limited technical-know-how, weak infrastructure, quality control and socio-cultural issues. Governments over the years have tabled good policies but implementation have been poor. The paper recommended among others that cottages and other projects such as public buildings, government affordable housing projects be built with bricks to encourage individuals to patronize bricks.

Keywords

• Brick industry; Ghana, clay history, advocacy, infrastructure