UNHCR FRT 23 m² — Larger Family / Communal Tent
The larger variant of the UNHCR Family Relief Tent — 23 m² floor footprint for households of seven to nine, or as a small-communal multi-use unit (registration, distribution, child-friendly space). Same canvas spec and fire-retardant treatment as the 16 m² FRT, scaled-up frame and ground cloth. Manufactured at BNC Karachi.
Used for larger households · communal multi-use · post-distribution offices · child-friendly spaces
The 23 m² FRT on the procurement sheet.
Where the 16 m² FRT solves the typical 5-person family unit, the 23 m² variant catches the long-tail: extended households common in Afghan, Sudanese, and South Sudanese caseloads, and the small-communal use cases that camp managers prefer to keep on the same canvas SKU rather than introduce a second supplier and a second spec.
- Floor area
- 23 m² (~4.7 m × 4.9 m)
- Capacity
- 7–9 person household, or small-communal
- Standing height
- 2.0 m at ridge, 1.4 m at eaves
- Fly canvas
- 280 gsm cotton, fire-retardant
- Body canvas
- 410 gsm cotton, double-layer
- Ground cloth
- 510 gsm PVC, fully welded
- Frame
- Galvanised steel ridge + 4 corner uprights, reinforced ridge-pole
- Ventilation
- Two large mesh windows + mesh-screened door, optional second door
- Packing
- ~95 kg total; canvas bale + frame bundle
- Lead time
- 21–35 days FOB Karachi
When the 23 m² is the right call.
Camp-planning teams choose 23 m² over 16 m² when the registered household-size distribution skews above the Sphere baseline. Afghan and Sudanese caseloads commonly run an average of 6.8–7.4 persons per household; a 16 m² unit there enforces overcrowding from day one. The 23 m² variant restores 3.0–3.3 m² per person which keeps the protection cluster's complaints inbox lighter.
The communal use case is even more common than buyers expect at procurement time. The 23 m² is the smallest UN-spec canvas tent that comfortably hosts a four-person registration desk plus a small queue, or a child-friendly-space activity circle of fifteen children. Camp managers prefer one canvas SKU across both family and communal use because it simplifies repair-kit stocking and replacement cycles.
Frame strength matters more on the 23 m² than on the 16 m². A larger fly catches more wind; BNC's 23 m² uses a reinforced ridge-pole with intermediate cross-bracing and heavier corner uprights. Standard ground-anchor kit is sized for the larger footprint.
Where 23 m² FRTs have gone into the field.
Afghan refugee response · multi-decade
Larger-household caseloads in Pakistan-side Afghan refugee camps and inside-Afghanistan IDP sites have absorbed 23 m² FRTs alongside the 16 m² baseline across the 1990s, 2001 response, and post-2021 displacement waves.
Communal multi-use · across responses
23 m² units fitted out as registration desks, distribution offices, child-friendly spaces, and small clinics across the Pakistan flood, Türkiye earthquake, and Sudan response operations.
Quote on 23 m² FRT — same Karachi business day.
Tell us volume, destination, Incoterm, and whether the use is household or communal. We come back with price, lead time, and the relevant certifications attached.