Ghanaians' hopes fill up with house made of bottles

ACCRA, Ghana－On the outskirts of the Ghanaian capital Accra, a newly constructed building stands out among many humble structures in the fishing community of Kokrobite.

The unique building, which was built with 45,000 recycled plastic bottles, has been the most visited place in the community. Once the interior is fully decorated, it will become a free multimedia library for children.

Martial Zohoungbogbo, who holds dual citizenship of Ghana and Benin, built the "bottle house" with the money he raised himself and help from many locals. Standing in the middle of the house, he could not help envisaging the library's future.

"The kids will have access to the internet, they will read books and have classes together, and they will finally have a place to entertain themselves," he said.

Kokrobite is one of the least developed communities in the region, where most of the families rely on traditional fishing and cannot afford better education for their children.

Martial, who came to this community 30 years ago, picked up the technique of building architectures with plastic bottles from a German architect. After learning that there were inadequate spaces for children to learn, Martial decided to use the architectural technique to make a change.

Two bottle sizes were used in the main construction of the building. Larger bottles filled with soil and tightly bound by ropes were used as "bricks" for the walls, while the smaller ones were laid firmly layer by layer to be pillars.

Before building the library, Martial had already completed a public school classroom project using the same technique. He spent almost four months building the structure, which was applauded by many locals.

For Martial and his partners, the shortage of recycled bottles and labor were the largest obstacles apart from funds when they first started. Fortunately, his project soon gained traction. A recycling company agreed to sell bottles to them, and school children from the community volunteered to fill the bottles.

Martial said the "bottle house" was not only environmentally friendly, but it was also strong and safe. Most importantly, it was easy to repair and affordable for ordinary people.

Asafoatse Nii Ayi Otumfuo, a Kokrobite local, said Martial's "bottle house" will change a lot of things in the community and his dedication to children from humble backgrounds is also extending a positive influence in society.

"I will always support him, because he is giving our children education, which I believe is much better than money," said Otumfuo.

Xinhua