Kaira Looro International Architecture Competition chooses as the central theme of this year’s competition the design of a home for children in southern Senegal to protect health and combat malnutrition. The “Children’s House” will have to be a warm and welcoming place, where it will be possible to carry out activities aimed at fighting child malnutrition in a rural context of Sub-Saharan Africa. There are currently 149 million children in the world who suffer from retarded growth due to nutritional problems caused by poverty, conflict and environmental crises. Therefore, the architecture of the “Children’s House” will be a space designed to combat child malnutrition through the supply of nutritional material, the development of health and hygiene awareness programs, the organization of pediatric and social-assistance visits, the hosting of individuals at risk and the training of community nurses. The competition aims to launch new talents in the world of architecture, to raise awareness of the international community on emergency issues and to support humanitarian projects. Participation in the competition is open to student architects, designers, engineers and anyone who wants to propose a solution to the theme. You can participate in teams or individually, with the only requirement being the presence of under 35 in the team.
The proposals received will be evaluated by a jury composed of prominent architects including: Kengo Kuma (Kengo Kuma & Associates), Mario Cucinella (Mario Cucinella Architects), Agostino Ghirardelli (SBGA | Blengini Ghirardelli), Benedetta Tagliabue (EMBT Miralles Tagliabue), Mphethi Morojele (Mphethi Morojele Design Studio), Alice Dietsch (AL_A), Giuseppe Mazzaglia (MVRDV), Sharon Devis (Sharon Davis Design)), Ligia Nunes (Architecture Sans Frontières International )Saad El Kabbaj, Driss Kettani and Mohamed Amine Siana. Prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd, 3rd place, 2 honorable mentions, 2 special mentions, 20 finalists and 20 Top 50. The winning project will receive a cash prize (€5,000) and an internship at Kengo Kuma & Associates in Japan, as well as the construction of the project as a humanitarian intervention. The 2nd and 3rd place teams will receive €2,000 and €1,000 respectively and internships at Mario Cucinella Architects and SBGA Blengini Ghiradelli in Italy. All projects will also be published in the official competition website and book, broadcast to 30 global media partners of the competition and shared with institutional partners.
The project will have to meet certain construction requirements: it must be easily achievable through sustainable technologies and adaptable to self-building, make use of natural and/or recycled materials available on the territory, be integrated into the environmental, social and cultural context of the place. The architecture (of maximum 250 square meters) must accommodate the following activities: Administration, storage, hospitality and recreational-playing. The competition is organized by the Humanitarian Organization Balouo Salo , which is engaged in Africa with charitable projects and the proceeds, obtained from the registration fees, will be donated entirely to the realization of the winning project in a village in southern Senegal, where the same organization operates.
Registration will begin on January 15th 2022.
For further information please visit www.kairalooro.com
