Student competition launched to improve maternal health in Africa

A design competition is calling on architecture students and graduates to envision a safe and welcoming maternity centre in southern Senegal, Sub-Saharan Africa.

The Kaira Looro 2024 Architectural Competition has been launched to address the life-threatening health complications that pregnant women in Senegal and the wider region are prone to experiencing. The competition brief states that "every year, [in Sub-Saharan Africa] more than 200,000 women lose their lives due to a lack of basic care" subsequently "resulting in more than 1 million orphans each year."

"In Africa, one in 16 women risks dying giving birth to a new life, while in other parts of the world, thanks to prenatal care and specialised assistance during childbirth, this risk affects one in 35,000 women," the brief reveals. "This issue is often the result of complications that could be prevented or treated with access to basic medical care."

The competition objective is to generate a design for a humanitarian-operated facility that provides health services to pregnant women. The jury will be seeking a scheme that is innovative, comfortable, emblematic, professional, promotes sanitary conditions and emanates a feeling of safety among women.

The structure or structures must be able to be self-constructed by local community members, without the requirement for qualified tradespeople, construction companies or heavy vehicles. A sustainable architecture model must be adopted and the scheme must incorporate local materials. The design will be required to accommodate a reception area and waiting room, an operating area for caesarean sections, a reserved area for healthcare personnel, a neonatal observation area, a medical examination and consultation area and a labour and delivery area.

The international jury comprises Kengo Kuma of Kengo Kuma and Associates, Benedetta Tagliabue of EMBT Architects, Mario Cucinella of Mario Cucinella, Agostino Ghiradelli of SBGA - Blengini Ghirardelli, Tosin Oshinowo of Oshinowo Studio, Urko Sanchez of Urko Sanchez Architects, Raul Pantaleo of TAM Associati, Emmanuelle Moureaux of Emmanuelle Moureaux Architecture, Driss Kettani, Saad El Kabbaj and Mohamed Amine Siana.

Registrations close on 14 May 2024 and the submission deadline is 11 June. The jury will evaluate the submission until 29 June, with winners expected to be announced on 9 July.

The competition is run by an independent not-for-profit organization Balouo Salo and is aimed primarily at students, young architects, designers and engineers. Awarded designs will be donated to the organization and may be used to construct a charitable project.

To find out more, visit the Kaira Looro competition website.