Proposal of Methodology for Evaluation of a Vertical Shanty Building in Beira, Mozambique

Abstract

Emerging economies are in an almost winless situation: they would benefit from improving the extremely poor economic situation, making them self-reliant and economically productive. However, the poor fight for daily survival and, therefore, cannot afford to improve themselves. This article describes the state of the “Grande Hotel” in the city of Beira, Mozambique, built-in Portuguese colonial times, a real vertical shanty building that is occupied by approximately 1000 inhabitants trapped in poverty. To carry out any constructive intervention in a building or an urban complex, it is necessary to carry out a rehabilitation project that is developed based on a diagnosis of the building understudy, its main deteriorations, the causes, mechanisms of action, evolution, and possible treatments to be used for its repair. Analysis methods are necessary for the conservation of buildings since trying to stop, or correct buildings’ deterioration without a diagnosis of their problems or a prognosis on their evolution is a risky procedure with a high percentage of failure chances. The use of an appropriate methodology for diagnosing the damage present in the “Grande Hotel” and its prediction of evolution and development should directly impact a better quality of rehabilitation projects in the neighborhood where the building is located.