Report on the 5th International Building Exhibition
By Korantemaa Larbi

The 5th International Building and Construction Exhibition was held at the International Conference Center in Accra, Ghana from the 12th to the 15th of October, 2007. This year’s was special as it was held in the jubilee year of Ghana’s independence and was dubbed: National Assignment: 50 years of building a nation and housing the people: The way forward.

The idea of this yearly International Building Exhibition (IBE) was started by Mrs. Marilyn Efua Houadjeto, director of Image Consortium, an event organising company in 2002 and has been sustained very well and growing bigger. The director was inspired by the difficulty people went through in locating good finishes and professionals to handle their design and building projects and was also appalled by the bad constructions that were prevailing in Ghana. She decided to create a win-win situation for companies and prospective clients in a bid to enhance construction in Ghana. Marilyn Houadjeto believes that structures should be built and built right from inception to finish.
In her welcome address at the opening ceremony of this year’s exhibition, Marilyn Efua Houadjeto, who is also the exhibition director, noted that it was a good period to be in the building industry because the country is experiencing a boom in this industry. There is a lot of construction taking place, from the Presidential lodges to the Accra Mall and housing estates and she believed in the right timing of Image Consortium’s exhibitions to make available much need information and services to the public.
 
The annual IBE has no doubt made an impact on the building industry. The public are more aware of design and building professionals and the services they render as well as finishes and furnishings on the market. In Marilyn Houadjeto’s welcome address she mentioned that a number of seminars on ‘Property as an investment’ and ‘Property Financing’, an exhibition in South Africa and Property Awards that have resulted from the IBEs. Among the guests of honour at the opening ceremony were the Ministry of Water, Works and Housing.

This year’s exhibition lay emphasis on bridging the gap in the demand and supply of housing and was held in collaboration with the Ghana Institute of Architects in the month of October which just happened to be the International month for the building industry. The exhibition creates the opportunity for interaction among construction and design professionals and stakeholders on issues that affect them. It also, essentially, showcases quality innovative products and services for all stages of building projects (construction, finishing and furnishing).

60 companies featured at this year’s exhibition and the exhibits ranged from sanitary ware from Duravit, Kitchens from Arrital, exterior and interior paints, water filtering systems, air conditioning systems, tiles, locally produced furniture, building and roofing systems. Negucci Ghana limited, an estate company featured their thermally insulated hollow blocks which they use in the construction of their buildings. As a prize for the yearly raffle held at the exhibition, Negucci contributed a three bedroom house to the winner. Companies that provided services in interior design, water management, and construction and computer installation were also present.

One highlight of the exhibition was the Free Consultation Day by the Ghana Institute of Architects at their stand. Impressively, a number of attendants walked into the stand with their drawings some drawn by the right professionals, others not, to seek advice on their building projects. The exhibition culminated in a conference by the Ghana Institute of Architects and supported by the Ghana Institute of Planners themed “Property Investments today: The way forward’. The speakers included Mr. S.O. Afram (senior lecturer, Department of Architecture, KNUST), MR. F.I.A. Tackie (President, Ghana Institute of Planners), Architect Osei Kwame Agyeman (Vice President, GIA) and representatives from Ghana Home Loans, the Electricity Company of Ghana, Dizengoff WA, Taysec (a construction and estate company) and Duraplast (a pipe manufacturing company).

Among the attendants at this year’s IBE were architecture students from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, Ghana. With products and service stands to food stands, it was a glorious 4-day affair well attended, successful and beneficial.