From the Series
New York-based non-profit organisation 14+ Foundation has recently elected Selldorf Architects, also based in New York, to design the Mwabwindo School in Mwabwindo Village, Zambia. Despite improvements, the state of education in Zambia is still poor. According to a UNICEF report on education in the country, “more than a quarter million children are out of school and 47 per cent of those enrolled in school do not complete the primary cycle”.
The Selldorf Architects firm envisions the primary school as a space that will inspire learning, endorse sustainable living, and act as a vehicle for economic change in southern Zambia. The design of the airy, canopy-like building pays homage to the indigenous savanna trees, which have become gathering spaces and shelters from the harsh African sun. In keeping with the vernacular architecture of the area, the school will be made up of mud-brick classrooms, and will feature a corrugated metal roof, an internal street, and a central courtyard, which will act as the social heart of the building.
The facility will accommodate 175 pupils, and include housing for eight teachers, playing fields for the children, and a community vegetable garden.
Also behind the establishment of the Chipakata Children’s Academy in Zambia, the 14+ Foundation is dedicated to empowering children through education, art-based education in particular. Construction on the Mwabwindo School is set to start in 2016 with proposed completion in 2018.
