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20.03.2023

Planning without borders

The village of Ifa Biyya in Ethiopia is separated by a stream that becomes a strong river during the rainy season. Unfortunately, this is often a deadly danger for the children of the village. Now a stable bridge is to be planned and built for the permanently safe crossing of the river. The pde Integrale Planung is involved and takes over the planning on a voluntary basis.


Currently, there is only a simple bridge made of logs in the heart of the community of 5,100 inhabitants* to cross the river. With more than 750,000 crossings per year, this is used intensively by the community population - especially by school children and agricultural workers.

Goal: Safe crossing of the river

During the rainy season, however, parts of the bridge are regularly washed away.

It has no railings and is extremely slippery when it rains, increasing the risk of a fall. If a schoolchild or a villager falls, this can have life-threatening consequences. The goal of the association "Ingenieur:innen ohne Grenzen Austria" is therefore the construction of a new, stable bridge with safe railings. This should enable a safe crossing, also for transport carts and animals, in order to promote the economic progress of the village.

pde assists with the design

The Graz structural engineering department of pde Integrale Planung is responsible for the holistic preparation of the bridge plan for the project - primarily in the form of construction drawings. Construction companies in Ethiopia are to be provided with a clear and as simple as possible instruction manual to realize the bridge construction on site.

At a trade fair in Graz, the association Ingenieur:innen ohne Grenzen Austria approached us to ask for donations. We asked what we could contribute apart from money and spontaneously offered our voluntary support in the planning.

Martin Koza, Head of Structural Engineering Graz

However, the complete financing of the project is still missing for a successful realization. Currently, just under 25% of the required € 99,000 has been donated. The bridge construction can be supported on the website of Ingenieur:innen ohne Grenzen Austria.

More information about the project can be found in the following video: https://youtu.be/aVdyrX9anhA

Contact Ingenieur:innen ohne Grenzen Austria: