TA.:BLE III-5

Estimated aluminium utensil use, some African countries .

.

^~:

..J

AluminiUin utensil use 'Pe''b' .capi:ta

32. These

fragm~ntary dat~

show the usualdireot;elationship15ehFeeh per capita use ofaluminiu.m

';;~d J?~r':ca.p:lta

^{Lncoms ,}

'Aluniiniumut~rl~'i:i:s

. . - , ., .- --~I:, . , :. :;-" " q , . ,-. ',;!:. i , ' , ' - _' '

are necessarily purchased by incse with most cash income. Cheaper'

~- , " ; . '., ,. I '

enamel wa.re or home made pottery :lS preferred by those with less cash income even thouiJi'tnli aluminiuni

'ute~sil ^wili

outlast thebtherutensile and' be cheaper in'

th~

^{tong rim.} Tradition and custom^{-. C-,I" ' { . '}

in

some African countries also have proven to

beobsta()f~;s·

to changing to aluminium· as with other·

pr~d.1.1cis:

^{But the}

spread.;~f·aiuminium

utensils over mu.ch'

of AfI.ica shows that

.t~adi

tion and custom

~~e

^yielding. Trad.ition·

can also be

ove;cgm~

^{when it}

isne6es,§~i;·for

a government tO'accelerate

..-~. l' .

a change, as in India· where· the government 'through use cfimport restrictions is interested in accelerating the change from br~s~ ~o

alruninium 'utensils and"f:Fom coppM.t,i;>" ..ltui!;jif!;j;um electrical conduotor in order to save on the large

amo~t

^of

iO~~igll exchan~e ne~ded

^for

imported copper and zinc,

E/ CN .14/AS/.II/2/j

Page

47

33.

The encouragement of the ^l1S8 of aIu')]; mum utensils by African

governments is in the, ,public interest, both to the individuals concerned

with c o c k in g and economy of ^{f ' u e}L, ^{a n d} to governments ' c o n c e r n e d with

forestation and:;:-educ,ing' tl:e drain ^of fuel wood. The possible methods of encour-ag emerrt ^vstar-t ^{'d 't}h tariff adjustments so as toinb'rease the competitive ability of a~~~ipium utensils against imported enamel ware and other ute~sils, end particularly to encourage domestic manufacture of aluminium utensils. The tariff on aluminium sheet or circles for making utensils is ei tter e Li mi.nated e-r kept very 10'-[ to stimulate

domestic manufac~ure. The tariff on other utensils or utensil maileria,],s is kept higher, but is not necessarily increased if this would arouse public resentment.

34.

Other methods include the use of aluminium utensils as part of government instruction teclLYli'lues in education, health, sani ta, tion and reforestation_ Such utensils would be shown and demonstrated in the travelling exhibits and other media that ~.frican Governmen'ts will oe using increasingly as they follow the example of other agrarian nations in the tHentieth century in seeking rapid progress through methods of mann instruction.

Aluminium inagx:iouitmc, food and fibre production, and storage

35.

Africa needs to produve more food and fibre, to do so more efficiently; to ircrease the protein consumption of much of the popu.l ata c.n anc,

'co

provide better means to poceserve and store under tropioal heat the perishable foods. Aluminium has demonstrated unique abilities to help meet euch needs in warm climates elsewhere in the world and to do tbis with substantial economies that pay in a short time for the c ost of the aluminium.

36. Aluminium, ~o~~~~~mperatures,and productivity. New aluminium surfaces reflect 80 per cent of the sun's heat,·as compared "ith a reflectiirit;y- by new galvanized iron of 50 per cent. Inside a building under an aluminium 'roof, 10 per cent of the S~IS heat is emitted compared with 50 per cent in the case of new galvanized iron. OVer

E/CN

^.14/

AS/n/2/

^j

Page 48

a period of time, as aluminium loses some of its' reflectivi ty, it

still retains an advantage compared with galvanized. These character-' istics permit the temperature inside structures with aluminium roofs to be kept during hot weather as much as 15 degrees lower than structures with galvanized roofs and other roofing materials.

37.

Studies made by agricultural colleges and others in the southern United States have shown that high temperatures and heat radiation reduce the amount of output of farm animals in milk, egga and meat for consumption. Among the results of such,studies were findings that:

(a) In poultry production, in the mid-Atlantic USA, the use of aluminium roofing instead of asphalt and wood covering during one season reduced the mortality of birds ,and gave a six per cent increase in the.weight of bird sold.

(b) In beef production in the southwest USA, cattle sheltered' under aluminium instead of asphalt roofing gained daring one season 13 per cent more..weight.

(c) In milk production in the southwest USA, the use of aluilliniUm roofing and fence shades in one ,swnmer contributed to an increase in output of 3 pounds of milk per cow per day, cr 540 pounds per cow in the season.

(d) In one investigation, the gain in weight of cattle kept under an aluminium shelter as' compared to those under galvanized. iron produced enough profit in one season to pl>yfor .theextra cost of.aluminium over galvanized roofing.

(e) Another case showed the gain in milk production in one season from, cows kept under aluminium as compared with.

galvanized roofing paid 'in 17'days for the extra cost of aluminium"

of the gain

And similar results >lere found in the value in hog production and egg production.!!

", r

11

Reports on investigations of this type are available from the Reynolds Metals Company, Richmond, Virginia, USA. This company is a leader in such studies in the aluminium industfy.

ElGN

.14/AS/II/2/j

Page

49

38.

There are other ways of reducing radiation and heat oesides using a ref,leotive 'aluminiuJ'l surface, such as using white paiht, or aluminium paint on troolio,r, on other roofing materials, 'or more recently, using aluminium coated steel. 3ut there are additional advantages to the use of aluminium itself. There are savings in not having to repaint it periodioally, ':'11d. the savings in transportation costa of shipping it, and in Labour- coe

ts

of installing it, as compared to steel and other heavier materials.

39.

Aluminium and food, storage and preservation. I t is not enough produce more food in Africa. I t is necessary also to proteot food against deterioration so that i t can be transported, stored andused.

Meat, eggs, milk and fish would oe oonsumed in greater amounts if they could oe stored for longer periods in Afrioa. The refleotivity of aluminium makes it desiraole to use with other insulating materials to protect perishaole foods. Under aluminium roofs and in aluminium oontainers, costs of refrigeration are reduced compared to sonie other materials, and perishaole foods are protected longer. In transport oy refrigerated trucks and railroad cars, the lightness of aluminium

also permits the oarrying' of a greator amount of pay load at lcwer unit cost, as 11811 as giving ^j,t g2'eater protection against deteriora-tion at lowe"" '""i't co o^{t ,} The Rhodesian Railway has r ecent.Ly ordered 36 aluminium refrigerator cars.

40. Aluminium, sprinkler irrigation'I' and greater. crop output.

Aluminium has made possible_{. . j .} a. substantial increape in agricultural_{. •} productivity in the United States a~d in other countries in tha past 20 ye ar-s throu"h the, t.e.ohnⁱ ques of s,prinkler irrigation wi th aluminium pipe. This pipe w~ighs about one third that of steel pipe, and is easily moved around by two farmers or even oy children. It is laid in rows connected to a main pipe that ie fed usually by pumping water wi th a gasoline motel' from a pondj st;re~Pl,:lake or well. The sprinkler heads

water

are spaced at intervals along ~~e rows of over the crops in the same manner as rain.

pipe, and scatter thq This method eliminates the irrigation method of runninb water in open ditches along rows of orops, and sloping the ditches so that the water runs dOWnhill.

E/

CN. 14/AS! II/2/3 • Page

50

41. Sprinkler irrigation is used not only in regions ",ith prolonged dry seasons, but in regions where rainfall is abundant but irregular.

The advantages of th,is tYlJe of irrigation over normal rainfall or gravi ty di t ch irrigation aner.

(a) More accurate cdntrol over the exact amount of water needed 1'or plants and _ti'e~sso as to avoid waste of water', inoludil'tg sprinkling at night when the evaporation rate is reduced;

(b) Supplying the water at the most advantageous time in the

growi1ig"a~ason, and particularly" for young plants;

(c) Distribution of fertilizer materials t~ough disolvipg tbem Ln th~, water pwnped tbr0';'bh tlle system; saving the Labour costs of fertilizing; and

(d) Irrigation of steep s10pes, and the use of otherlarids for o:r:?psthan cannot be used. ,with ditch irrigation becaUse the soil, would wash dcvn , unless terracing is used.

Some african government officials esti~ate that sprinkler irrigation saves 20 to 30 per cent cfth~ water used under present practices of gravity irrigation.

42. In Africa, all of the above advantages of sprinkler irrigation are needed. North AJ:I'i6a is chronically short of water,. Over balf of tropical Africa ex~eriences seasonal surpluses and shcrtages of water. Muoh of.Afrioa suffers from land erosion. For

s~ch c6~dfti6ns

sprinkler irrigation is appropriate. There is also a limited contribu-tion to health in much ofil.frica that the sprinkler system can make compared to the open di tchsystem b'etween rows of crops. The sprinkler system eliminates these di'bchea which along wi th other' open bodies of fresh water support the mollusc that carries the parasite that causes bilharziasis (sch~stosomiasis). This disease is incurable, affects abcut one-third

of

th~{pcpuJ.atJ.on ^of Africa (over

62

million in

1960),

and is particularly prevalent in Egypt. It is "cne of the most unpleasant

,', ,'''"l"

•

E;!

CN.141"'S/+~/21^j Page 51

and debilitating diseases found anywher-e in t:r-opica1 Af:r-ica.·"l1 It ' can get into the system whenever the Afrioan wades, bathes^'(')1.' otheI"Wi~El

steps into a body of infected water. The open ir:r-igation ditch is

,CC," .',",

.-".

one means of spreading infection. The sprinkler irrigation 'system can reduce the expos'lire to infection. This should be regarded only as a 1i~ited aid and' one that would cease with the use of other methods of control of infection, including the use of concrete-lined main oanals in which the mollusc will not live, the use of covered canals, and ohemibaltreatment of canals.

43. The costs of sprinkler systems depend Upon the acreage to be covered. Although such systems are used "n large farms, they also can be

~El,f'on

^very

~mallfarms

producing a high value crop. Thus, intb:e

l1SAa.il·'in~estmentnf

$3,500 was made in .anirrigation system

_ "ir· -~i. -. " -. '-',,i - .-., .

f';!-'onry 4.4 acres that produced enough .il-ddition<>c:L tf'bacCt'l in the

y~£:.;:'1§150t(,'- p;'y, fo~ its~lf

^{in one aeaaen.,} In California, an invest-ment of '$5,560' t"oi'rrigate 55 acres of apple orchard also I\aidfnr itself in one

~eason.gJ

In Assam, India, sprinkler irrlgati"n has been used on _~~a plantations with the results of reducing by as muoh as two years the period between plant~ng and the first harvest;

reducing,or eliminating the loss of eeedlings from drought; and increas-ing yiel,ds, illustrated by one tea plantation that obtained an average increase of,576 pounds per acre.l!

Ge0'rge H.T. Kimble,Tropical Africa, The Twentieth Century Fund, New York, 1960 Vol. II Pp. 37-38.

R~Ported

by Reynolds Metals Company, Richmond, Virginia.

. ^~

..

.^~,..-',

" ~"

44. Spr:i;!)kler i:rigation systP:!lS are being used in some. parts ,or Africa including European pl,,!ltationsr

. .

9f'rE~(3t .africa and recently

in

.~

Egypt, but are in t b early,stage

0t'.

1>pplio9tiQnbecause ·"friMll agricul ture genera:qy ;is in the early stag!l of ,trans.ition from·

",'.~)

subsistence ra!,!').ing,to mCX'G prod,qdive methods. Sp,-"inkle:r"il'rigatibn may have its most immediate oppo"hmities on thec{lla,Jj'ge Europ'Gan "

;-:;' ,- . - ·"Lj '.' . , ' ; . "

pl8Jltations ,in_{; '..} Af~'ic" but. much iJigg0J! opport.unities,il1 the long rtin

".-:.~ ' .,~

-,-as the var-i oil? government agri cultux:a).progralliJIies adva:rioe ,whether

, '_~ • , i

in major irrigation projects or in helping t:he smalCl·land, hoa:ders to adopt systems of permanent cropping.

45.

.If, as it would seep,. &;OlTarnWen'cs must increasinglypromow"'-' methods to st,ore ~lato.r far us e ..,J,n;agricul ture duringdrw s-easons,''thE\' dema';ld..f0~ ~p~inkler i'trigc-tj-911,; system,s. pould: gr.ow' Bubsi;a.n;tially. The methodei~s~~f"J:s"t~f m,o.ropro.@cit~Ye4;o:,s<>:j.ls than the'e'1'<>sl.ve tre(pical rains. _Wh~Ee,

8:'".'714-,

Land }J:'i"ld~Rg,s li;I'e·j,l1vqlved ,comnrt:lt.lalcantlⁱ

o'a,,-\ .

operat~ve ..I)'-(,j'h~<j.~

a;L;::"tr,q..jl,

^8;jHb;J,i <ebep.,4,ll.;A;frica jllay be" orre"s(Jl_uti~n' ,

to f'in~oir:!/

,"t

~~ig?:.',aI"-'i'!lIE('t~.jle:).p, the costs' o;fcpOrids,

wens

andreilevoirs, and the as soc.Lated s]?);'inlder ,ij.,.:j,gc.:l;ion "quipmentl ' .

c.' " .. ) - .•• .1" ",~ _.' •

46. As pointecb;.out'by SQl1bd,Sri'cui.

ttJ.re

df'fioials of Af'ficaii 'governments, .the sMrtage of govemlliel1t?,l funds' f"votii's initia.llY: the use

:~f'gravi~;

iUigatiorrsche".es,tiththei,: lo"ertota.l investm';-~fand'smailer annual

, ... ' - . __ , ; i ',; r ,(

operating costs. But the,' geO:OGrlllly agtee' that asiproduc td cn increases of cash crops and as the F,Of;)t e8.~~iJ.y d.eveloped gravity schemes-are"

. . r', - , . " , . : . : ' "'._ .-,. , ,"': •,-- '":\':-'

completed, .•tlre'''1;rend'wiJ.l''ce ;.'omicasingl'y -towaro 'sprink:\e;r ,ir:ICiogation •

.

^'

- '.

^{",- ,}

Some offioials do point OU'., , that 3"001 rather .than alUJDin;;,uml!ipe ,is

-~ ..';., .;- ,.,,':\I,,:r,;i'- C,.'· • • .,< .. - . .' ; , "',' . ' ! , ' " ...

favoured where' the- stronger s',3el pipe withstands rough _treatm~nt by AfriAan....{jrkeJ;>S" but o'bheT expetien'C(l8

ina:lcat~tha\ ~;rth'prop~r

supervision and training

0:

laboQ~, the merits of aluminium over steel pipe in irrigation "ill be recognized in Africa as they have in other parts of the world.

47.

The subject also is pa~t of the complications of Afrioan agriculture and land tenure in which sinplo solutions are not qUickly found, and

cannot be bor-r-ov ad uncr-i·'ical l y fro:r, rr:ethods of f'arming in other oountries.

•

.t.

E/ CN. 14/1I.S/ II/Z/

j

Page

53 ' '

Hoifsprinkler irrigation can best f:it in with successful agronomic methods has to be proven in il.frica"here, as reported by Kimble, the lead:ing soil problem' is not ferti11

ty

but' stability and stamina, where

..' ^_'~." r:^I"

tropical soils respond differently thans'oilselsewhere to exposure and cultivation-, and where agricul tttral 'J,e'seai-dhorganizations;'dmi t they are a long way from making .African soils '''safe'' for modern farm-ing methods.

1I ' ,," ' ,

Aluininiumand African building'construction

48. The gr?wth of demand for bU;lding materials in Africa sets the framj3worl;<;in,whlch aluminium must,find its place. Thi.s place can be more easily mi?asured fOr, govEl.rnmentand commercial buildings than for general housing. The investment in public and cOmmercial buildings can be controlled se,as .to obt.aan from al,terna tiv e mati'rials the loweat oosts over t)le service.;!,ives of the :;;t,ructures, except in; the case of those public s tz-uo tures w,here Luxur-y, or prestige are morfrimpertant, than costs. ,:[,1:<e" choice of materials for general llousingr on

:the

other hand, is governed. principally by the ability of only,,~ smll-ll part of the African population to pay for hous;lpg. For most oft,he population, the cOst of housing by standards of developed countries

. r ' l . ".

is beyond their abiiity to pay, and they'have little ohoice of materia,ls.

, .r· ,'- . '-', .

They have to use native materials close at hand in each regi0Il;, such

~ . . , . ^'..,.

as clay, mud, cow-dUng, timber, stone, straw, twigs, and palm leaves.

Also, they _hav~ to' provide their'oWn labour. For most of the

popula-tiO~'

of Africa, the ,iffective housing demand is much smaller than housing

n~eds

as indicated by number of persons or fll-mily units per,

. ._.

.

room of 'dwelling, or'miniber of dwellings wi thout s ani,tary and other,

facilitie~:' Peopi~

have to crowd together in low grade housing in urban areas of Africa because they can't afford anything else.

E/

CN .14/AS/ II/2fj Pag&54 ..'

49. This is obvious from the statistical chasm between the estimated average per capita income in Africa of US$112 per year'in 1960 and the oostof government' sponsored housing in selected African countries, usually' _be1;w~en $1,006 and $3,500 for a small 'dwelling wi th- 50 square meters (505 square-feet).Y The $112 of income is not all cash,and ... , it

is

an average that only a small proportion of people equal

or

to the number of income earnerspeo::_ d~,,:~_~ing.,III t.erms of

according. --^L annual.

exceed.

all cash

But the costs of the dwelling exclusive ---10 to 35 times the per capita income,

of the land are but less

income of workers, the ECA concLuded that an acceptable social

dwell-to be built at a cost of about US$45

;'.',:;

50. As a broad gllide to. the growth in demand for all building materials, ECA. aaaumed that..g-ross -national product would expand at 5.5' per. 'cEm1; per year throughol,lt .(\.frica until 1980, thai; :investment .:in total construotion woUld rif'e,frol)l V"$l.9 billiol1 in 1960 to $9.2 billion,:in 1960-, !"xpenditure on

buil~,:Lng materials would rise from $1.1 .billion per year to $5.6 bialL~.

and this. expenditure would reflect a growing proportion of the __gr"JsB national product, increasing from 4.1,per cent in 1960 to 7t4 per bent:

in 1980., ':\'he annual. inorease in exp an di tures on building mdei-iUs Bconomi c Commission for ,Atrioa,·Housing in Africa. Problems.and Policies, p. 70 (E/CN.14/HOU/2, 3 May 1963).

Economic Commission for Africa, The Bui1din Materials ..in Afrioa, Present Structure an~,Future Growth, ~~. 1?~~9 4

15 January, 1964). .

• c

Ej

CN .14/AS/ II/2/j Page,,55

would come to over 8.5 p8r cent per year,1I As of 1960, africa imported by value 54 per cent of the building materials used. ECA looked towards the possibilities of replacing imports w'i tl1domestlc produc ti on.

51. These broad guides do not directly help to project aluminium's position in African building construction, even if' the assumed growt~

, ,J' ::

in over-all demand for: bUilding materials were certain tacome to pass.

The ECA itself

con~entr~ied

on p;ojections of

re~uirements'in'

^Africa

for the basic construction naterials

wood products arid iron and

steel.~

--cement, clay and ceramic products, 52. It is reasonabJ.e to nnnclude, hOlf8ver, that the demand foj;' alUj/linium

, J ..:

':':'

does face a prospect for a rate cf growth in bUilding construction at least as high as that for all building material~. ^'I'h.is should result from the growing attention that governments are giving to housing programmes'; from'the past

~xperience

and the continued expec'tatiori in Africa'that as per capita income'fises, the qua.Li.ty of housing will rise, arid f'r-om the associate,(g:f01;tb: that wi l L occur at the

commercial and iridJ~t~i~l ^level, a~ well as the 'level ot:g~vernment ^{• c} services i-eCluiring new government buildings.' In othe;words,'there will be a disproportionate gain 'in construction of'buildlngifor government, factories, commerce ana. public housing, as ''the:

ov~r-~h

,..:.['."

economies of Africa advance,

~-;-.

I L.r~

53. As a broad estimate, i t may be assumed that in 1963 out of some 55,000 short tons of

aluminiu~

c6nsilined{nAfri6;;', at least one-:'ti1ird.

, "

or 18;000 tons, were used in building apphcaHons'. If demand for suoh uses were to do at least as ;;ell 'astheECA projection for

'all

building materials of 8.5 per cent per

ye~r

^to

^198o,

the minim\im

need~

^"

would then be 72;000 tons 'of alumi.niUm per year for construction. This

11

^{Ibid, pp. 19-20.}

Y

Eeonomi,c Commission for1J.frica, ThecWilding lVIateri'als"Industr,yil'l' . Africa. Present Struoture and Future Growth~P9-Tt III, ,"ummar.Y and

ccncLusf.ons (HOU!l,P!

47

^{Add.2, 20 September 1964). ' , '}

E/

^CN

.141 Asl II/2fj

Dans le document Africa and the aluminum industry (Page 53-63)