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African construction faces growing demands for speed and efficiency. As technology advances, automation could offer new ways to meet these demands. But where does it fit in the continent’s construction future?
This article looks into where automation could support African construction, from smarter equipment and robotics to the engineering skills needed to bring these technologies into practice.
Africa’s Construction Landscape
Africa’s construction sector is facing growing demand as major urban centres expand and increase. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on its Africa’s Urbanisation Dynamics 2025, the continent’s urban population is projected to double from around 704 million to 1.4 billion by 2050, with cities expected to absorb 80% of the continent’s population growth.
This expansion is already shaping the outlook for cities such as Lagos, Kinshasa, Nairobi, Cairo, and Johannesburg, where growing populations will place greater demands on housing, transport, energy, water, and other essential infrastructure. As these needs grow, so does the scale of construction require to support them. According to the same OECD report, the continent would need an average of US$155 billion in infrastructure investment annually to keep pace with its urbanisation.
Yet the challenge extends beyond securing investment. Meeting this demand will also depend on how effectively the construction sector can plan, design, and build across rapidly changing urban environments.
For engineering professionals, this places greater emphasis on approaches that can accommodate population growth while considering resource constraints, climate pressures, and the long-term performance of infrastructure.
Building with Automation
Automation is already finding a place in several areas of construction across Africa, as shown by the following developments taking place across the sector:
- Automated construction material production – In Safi, Morocco, CIMENTIJI used Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF) support to automate its precast concrete production. The new line increased output by 68.7% while reducing electricity, water, and cement use per unit. This shows how green financing can help construction manufacturers adopt automation while improving resource efficiency.
- Drone-based site surveying – In Rwanda, drone technology is being applied to large-scale infrastructure surveying. On the Kageyo Dam and Irrigation Project, drones surveyed 2,442 hectares and captured aerial data that was used to create digital surface models and contour maps. With this information, engineering professionals could assess the terrain across the project area in greater detail. This supports the detailed engineering design of the dam and irrigation system.
- Digital project coordination – Building Information Modelling (BIM) is also already being used across Africa’s construction sector. According to the 2024 African BIM Report, 58.04% of respondents had implemented BIM in their work processes. Its use was most common during the design phase, with 70.67% of respondents applying BIM at this stage, compared with 39.56% during construction. These figures suggest that while BIM is already established in parts of the sector, its application still varies across different stages of project delivery.
- 3D-printed housing – In Kenya, robotic 3D printing has been applied to housing construction at the Mvule Gardens development in the town of Kilifi on the Kenyan coast. The printer deposits concrete layer by layer according to a digital design, forming the walls through a programmed construction process. The project shows how automated fabrication can be used directly in the construction of residential buildings, rather than being limited to design and planning.
Skills Behind Construction Automation
Together, these developments point to a construction sector where engineering professionals need to work alongside automated systems and digitally controlled technologies. This calls for a strong understanding of the mechanical and electrical engineering principles in practical project environments. The Engineering College of Science and Technology (ECST’s) engineering programmes cover these areas, with practical learning that give students a closer understanding of the practices that continue to shape Africa’s automated construction sector.
References
Africa’s Urbanisation Dynamics 2025
An Assessment of the Usage of Collaborative Robotics in the South African Construction Industry
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