Ghanaians already patronize container homes, although they are popularly affiliated with poverty and slums. In Kumasi and Accra―the largest cities in Ghana, container homes are popular in the migrant community, small-business owners, petty traders and slum dwellers. You can find container homes almost in any major city across Ghana―what may be a shop by day may be a home at the close of business. As the Ghana Living Standards Survey 7 report show, 4.8% and 1.3% of families in the Greater Accra and Ashanti regions live in improvised homes (kiosk/containers). But container housing is not limited to low- and moderate-income households. They can be modern, sustainable and stylish as I will how in this post. Maybe you’ll fall in love with beauty and elegance of container homes.

Kiosk estate is located along the Accra-Tema motorway and before the recent demolition of makeshift homes at the site housed thousands of people. These dwellers mostly engaged in petty trading and street hawking menial jobs but also served the factories and real estate developments within the stretch as cleaners, gardeners, security guards etc. For these dwellers, whether in shops or slums, affordability is not merely the cost of the rent. Transportation costs are a crucial determiner of their residential preferences. Work must be close to home to support their meagre earnings. It also means that demolitions don’t really address the core problems of these dwellers. If not for anything, it worsens their plight.

Real estate developers must realise the residential needs of supporting workers of their estates, who whether planned for or not will opt to locate close to their developments and this can impact property values. Ok, now back to beautiful container homes you could build in Ghana.

Examples of container housing around the world

What is container housing?

Container housing is a form of prefab housing. It uses shipping containers which are then remodelled to suit the specifications and taste of the client. Shipping containers come in different length; 40ft, 20ft and width; 8ft and 8.5ft. Extra tall containers known as high-cube containers have widths of 9.5ft. In the Netherlands and South Africa, shipping containers have been used as student housing. The South African project, located in Johannesburg for example can accommodate 400 students and has reduced electricity and water consumption by about 30% relative to conventional buildings. Netherlands’ Tempohousing is the largest student container housing in the world.

Depending on the size, shipping containers in Accra retail for between 7,000-12,000 Ghana Cedis.

Both exterior and interior are insulated for thermal conform using foam, polystyrene or other suitable materials. The entire remodelling process is quick and takes about a month but may be longer depending on the complexity of the clients’ needs/preferences. In contrast, building incrementally in Ghana takes a typical household about 5 years to complete—if not more.

Container homes for the Ghanaian housing market?

With the current housing deficit, variously estimated to be over 3.6 million units, container homes have been argued as a fast and low-income strategy for delivering housing for the masses. There are prototypes in Accra used either as offices or emergency centres or shops. A challenge is climate control. The hot daytime and cold nighttime temperatures make insulation cumbersome. There also questions about sustainability and health safety. Currently, transportation cost to sites distant from Accra could erode any cost savings from using container housing.

Will you like to stay in a container house? Let me know in the comments section.