The soil around Iringa is heavy, red clay. This is not a heavily forested area so using wood as a primary building material is out of the question. So, people make bricks. They have a form, fill it with soil and water and wait for it to dry. These dried bricks are placed in the sun so they can dry and harden further. Next, the bricks are arranged in an arced over pattern. A fire is built in the open arc and the bricks are fired as they would be in an over. This process is repeated until there are enough bricks to build a wall, house, etc. To further protect the bricks from rain, the exterior of a building could be painted with a cement/water mixture, creating a stucco-like finish. The roof is either thatched-grass or metal sheets.
We’ve seen building in every state of repair and dis-repair. When a person’s house begins to collapse, they simply start building another one a few feet away. Repair doesn’t seem to be the preferred option.
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