Aga Khan Planning and Building Services, (AKPBSP) established in Pakistan since 1980 as part of the larger Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) is a registered non-profit and non-government organization in international development, and is recognized nationally and internationally as such. AKPBSP, through its various programs and projects, has been working in remote valleys of northern Pakistan and the coastal areas in Sindh for over two decades. AKPBSP has experience of successfully undertaking built environment related infrastructure projects and development programs, at the national and international level. AKPBSP has recently received the prestigious ALCAN Award for Sustainability 2005 (www.alcanprizeforsustainability.com ). Also, AKPBSP-Building and Construction Improvement Programme (BACIP) very recently received the UN-HABITAT World Habitat Award 2006 (www.bshf.org ) for its programmatic approach and application in contributing to improved socio-economic and environmental condition of local population in Northern Areas and Chitral through promotion and use of energy efficient and home improvement products and technologies. The BACIP program is internationally recognized as selected case study by GEF (Global Environmental Facility) amongst all the small grants projects developed worldwide between 1992 and 2003 (www.sgp.net.pk/docs/BACIPevaluation.pdf ), significantly because of the success and effectiveness. Launched in 1997, BACIP address the rural household energy needs, indoor air pollution and associated health related issues through community-based action research to develop and test locally relevant Energy Efficient and Household Improvement (EE & HI) products and technology solutions.
More than 60 different energy efficient and living improvement products have been developed, tested and refined based on community feedback that include roof hatch window, house insulations techniques, fuel efficient stoves, water-warming facility, solar cookers, solar de-salinitor, HDGI wire wall reinforcement, light roofs, and bow-string composite beams etc. In the past few years, product dissemination process in few valleys of Northern Pakistan and Sindh comprised of demand generation and training of manufacturers and installers in few EE & HI products. Up to 2006 over 19000 EE & HI products have been installed on self-financing basis by 11,000 households in 135 village communities in 3-4 valleys in NA/C and Sindh. Documented benefits of these low-technology low-cost products include 50 % saving on fuel wood purchase for heating and cooking (about $35-45/ household/year), 25% reduction in health bills, 50% reduction in household repair expenditures, 50% reduction in smoke related diseases, beside reduction in women and children's workload and time spent in collecting fuel wood. These products are affordable, leading to housing well-being and increased disposable income, and have been replicated by local communities on self-finance basis.
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