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In sub-Saharan Africa, and other regions with similar environments, to promote the construction of vaulted earth brick houses which are environmentally friendly, affordable, and comfortable, using a now well-proven technique: la Voute Nubienne (VN). The VN technique, a simplified, standardised, adaptation of traditional methods from the Nubian region of Egypt, is relatively unknown in the Sahel and West Africa. The project is an exemplar of South > South technology transfer.

AVN's 'Earth roofs in the Sahel' program has grown exponentially since 2000, with 200 masons trained and 1000 vaults built by 2010: mainly for rural houses, composed of 1 - 3 vaults, but also for communal buildings (guest houses, schools, literacy centres, mosques, a church, health centres...). The program has spread from Burkina Faso to Mali and Senegal, and a new program was launched in 2009 in Zambia.