Incremental Adequate Housing – a Prototype for Urban Innovation in Windhoek

This project is an ILMI Seed Grant 2020 Awardee.

incremental adequate housing windhoek namibia

Update of the project, 2021: Read dispatch here

Although there are various housing models and prototypes being developed, none are aimed at the lowest income categories which constitute 83% of the current housing demand. A group of NUST staff and students set out to design a housing system that could cater to the ultra-ultra-low-cost sector; individuals with incomes below N$3,000 per month. This Project aims to secure additional financial support in order to build the first prototype of this Incremental Adequate House. Extensive research and design have been carried out so far by a group of NUST staff and students in the form of: Precedent and typology research, prototype design and modelling, costing, assessing against municipal regulations & planning policies etc. Building a 1:1 prototype is now an essential step to test the proposed design in terms of functionality, spatial constraints, material & fitting options etc. It is also imperative that a built example exists to present to the community at large, future investors and policy makers. This is a ground-breaking system which cannot be fully realised otherwise. Besides ultra-ultra-low-cost housing the project aims to promote the development of sustainable settlements which could grow over time into mixed-use and inclusive environments.

Project duration    August 2020 - January 2021

Principal investigator:    Sophia van Greunen, Lecturer, Department of Architecture and Spatial Planning, NUST; svangreunen@nust.na

Co-Investigators    Phillip Lühl, Head of Department of Architecture and Spatial Planning, NUST; Oliver Quarmby, Director of Facilities, NUST