Kaira Looro Architecture Competition 2025 design news, Africa nursery school architectural contest
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition
post updated 8 July 2025
Winners Announced for the Kaira Looro 2025 Competition on Designing a Nursery School in Rural Sub-Saharan Africa.
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition First Prize:
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition Winners News
The prestigious international architecture competition Kaira Looro has officially announced the winners of its 2025 edition, which saw unprecedented participation from all over the world. The initiative confirms itself once again as one of the most influential competitions in ethical and humanitarian architecture. Organized by the international non-profit organization Balouo Salo, the competition aims to empower young architectural talents, support sustainable development projects, and foster architectural research that benefits the most vulnerable communities on the planet.
The theme for the 2025 edition was the design of a Nursery School in rural areas of Southern Senegal, a safe, inclusive, and sustainable educational environment for children aged 3 to 6. The goal was to address one of Sub-Saharan Africa’s most pressing issues: the extremely limited access to early childhood education, a crucial phase for cognitive, emotional, and social development. In this region, less than 10% of preschool-aged children have access to educational facilities. Many villages lack dedicated infrastructures, and when they do exist, they are often inadequate. Families either cannot afford the costs or must travel long distances to access basic education. This reality perpetuates the cycle of poverty and inequality.
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition Second Prize:
The competition invited participants to design a structure of no more than 500 sqm, featuring areas for learning, playing, resting, and nutrition, while emphasizing the use of local materials, environmental sustainability strategies, and self-construction techniques. The project site represented the rural context where Balouo Salo has been actively working for over ten years, implementing initiatives that have reached thousands of people.
The 2025 edition recorded record-breaking participation, with over 1,000 teams from 118 countries, including India, Italy, South Korea, Turkey, Poland, Indonesia, Colombia, Brazil, Mexico, China, France, Japan, and Morocco.
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition Third Prize:
Projects were awarded by an international jury composed of some of the most renowned architects of our time: Kengo Kuma (Kengo Kuma & Associates), Benedetta Tagliabue (EMBT), Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem, Ramón Vilalta (RCR Arquitectes), Mario Cucinella (MCA Architects), Sir David Adjaye OM OBE (Adjaye Associates), Amanda Levete (AL_A), Manuel Aires Mateus (Aires Mateus), Giancarlo Mazzanti (El Equipo Mazzanti), Agostino Ghirardelli (SBGA | Blengini Ghirardelli), Raul Pantaleo (TAMassociati), Emmanuelle Moureaux (emmanuelle Moureaux INC), Saad El Kabbaj, Driss Kettani, and Mohamed Amine Siana. Supporting the jury was the scientific committee composed of Raoul Vecchio (Balouo Salo), Sebastiano D’Urso and Grazia Nicolosi (University of Catania), Dario Distefano (Archicart), and Moulaye Diabate (Balouo Salo).
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition 1st Prize:
The first prize was awarded to the team of Florentin Mougin, Timothé Fiedler, and Anne Sok from France. They will receive a cash prize of €5,000 and the internship award at Kengo Kuma & Associates in Tokyo.
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition 2nd Prize:
The second prize, of €2,000 was awarded to Siarhei Karoza from Poland.
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition 3rd Prize:
The third prize, €1,000 went to Kota Shima, Aoi Samitsu, Ishin Matsumoto, and So Kobayashi from Japan. Second and third place also win the Internship Awards thanks to which they will be able to do an internship at one of the prestigious studios Benedetta Tagliabue EMBT in Barcelona, Amanda Levete Architecct in London or SBGA Blengini Ghirardellia in Milan.
Two honourable mentions were awarded by Kengo Kuma and whole jury, to the Bolivian team of Alvaro Eduardo Taboada, Manuel Alejandro Jaramillo Paredes, Nathaniel Alonso Perich Soto, and Mateo Javier Grijalva Mancheno, and to individual participant Bogdan Loviste from Romania.
Additionally, 10 special mentions were given to outstanding projects from Argentina, France, Iran, Japan, Vietnam, Tanzania, South Korea, Italy, and Kenya. 35 finalists were also selected. All awarded projects are featured on the official website and will be published on the printed competition volume, which is distributed to media partners and academic and humanitarian institutions worldwide.
As per tradition, 100% of the competition proceeds are donated to Balouo Salo’s humanitarian projects in West Africa, aimed at improving access to water, education, and public health. The winning designs from the 2021 and 2022 editions—focused on a Women’s Training Center and a Centre to fight against child malnutrition—are currently under construction and on-going and will provide long-term benefits to vulnerable communities.
The 2025 edition reaffirms Kaira Looro’s mission as a unique platform where architecture merges with ethics, social responsibility, and sustainable innovation.
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Previously on e-architect:
10 December 2024
A non-profit event by Balouo Salo Humanitarian Organization in Sub-Saharan Africa
www.kairalooro.com – info(at)kairalooro.com
Kaira Looro Architecture Competition 2025:
Seeking Innovative Designs for Nursery Schools in Sub-Saharan Africa
Kaira Looro 2025 Competition for Nursery Schools in Africa
The lack of quality educational facilities in many rural areas of Sub-Saharan Africa poses a significant barrier to children’s development. Education plays a crucial role in nurturing cognitive skills, emo-tional growth, and social abilities, preparing them to face life’s challenges with resilience and crea-tivity. However, in many of these regions, children are deprived of these fundamental opportunities due to the absence of safe and stimulating environments.
To address this pressing issue, the 2025 edition of the Kaira Looro Competition invites architects, students, designers, engineers, and young professionals from around the world to design an architec-tural model for a Nursery School in rural areas of Sub-Saharan Africa. The objective is to create a safe and inclusive environment that promotes children’s well-being and development.
With this new edition of the competition, young professionals and students worldwide will have the opportunity to shape the future of education in Sub-Saharan Africa. This is not just a design challenge but also an invitation to contribute to a legacy of sustainability, creativity, and community empower-ment. Furthermore, Kaira Looro is the only competition with no profit-oriented objectives. All pro-ceeds are entirely donated to the humanitarian organization Balouo Salo, which is dedicated to im-proving access to education, healthcare, and infrastructure in these disadvantaged regions. By partic-ipating, entrants will also become witnesses to tangible change driven by solidarity.
The 2025 edition encourages participants to propose innovative, cost-effective, and sustainable solu-tions that integrate education, socialization, play, and exploration into a cohesive space. Proposals should focus on using local materials, sustainable construction practices, and involving the local com-munity in the building process. The resulting project should not only be a vibrant and welcoming space for children but also serve as a reference point for the local community and a model of sustain-able development.
Participants must also consider the challenges of building in rural areas, where the lack of skilled labor and heavy machinery can pose significant obstacles. The Nursery School should cover a maxi-mum area of 650 square meters and include classrooms, offices, educational and play areas, a medical room, a dining hall, storage, and sanitary facilities. All this should be achieved through a unique and innovative design that represents excellence in this educational field.
AWARDS
As per tradition, the competition also aims to launch young architectural talents into the international arena by awarding prestigious prizes and professional growth opportunities. Some of the most significant awards include:
1st Prize: €5,000, internship at Kengo Kuma & Associates (Japan), and the realization of the project as a humanitarian initiative.
2nd Prize: €2,000 + internship at one of Benedetta Tagliabue EMBT (Spain), Amanda Levete Architects (London), or SBGA Blengini Ghirardelli (Milan). 3rd Prize: €1,000 + internship at one of EMBT (Spain), ALA (London), or SBGA Blengini Ghirardelli (Milan).
Kaira Looro Architecture Competition – 2025’s Edition
a non-profit event by Balouo Salo Humanitarian Organization
Kaira Looro Architecture Competition
www.kairalooro.com – info(at)kairalooro.com
The competition also recognizes special and honourable mentions, as well as 35 finalists. All awarded projects will gain international visibility and be published in prestigious architectural journals and the competition’s official book.
JURY
The jury of Kaira Looro is made up of some of the world’s most renowned and award-winning architects worldwide, such as:
Kengo Kuma (Kengo Kuma & Associates)
Benedetta Tagliabue (Benedetta Tagliabue – EMBT Architects)
Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem, Ramón (RCR Arquitectes)
Mario Cucinella (Mario Cucinella Architects)
David Adjaye (Adjaye Associates)
Amanda Levete (Amanda Levete Architects)
Manuel Aires Mateus (Aires Mateus Architects)
Giancarlo Mazzanti (El Equipo Mazzanti)
Agostino Ghirardelli (SBGA | Blengini Ghirardelli)
Raul Pantaleo (TAM Associati)
Emmanuelle Moureaux (Emmanuelle Moureaux Architecture + Design)
Saad El Kabbaj, Driss Kettani, Mohamed Amine Siana
DATES AND DEADLINES
Early Registration: January 10 – February 28, 2025
Regular Registration: March 1 – April 9, 2025
Late Registration: April 10 – May 15, 2025
Project Submission Deadline: June 10, 2025
Jury Evaluation: June 23 – 29, 2025
Winners Announcement: July 8, 2025
For more information and to register, visit www.kairalooro.com.
Kaira Looro Architecture Competition 2025 information / image received 101224 from Project Earth 2
Previously on e-architect:
Kaira Looro Competition Winners
Kaira Looro Architecture Competition 2024 Maternity Centre in rural areas of Africa
image © Balouo Salo
Images © Balouosalo
Kaira Looro Architecture Competition 2023 Edition
Kaira Looro are a non-profit competition, and all proceeds from this design competition will be donated to the development of humanitarian projects aimed at improving the living conditions of poor communities in Africa.
Children’s House in Africa – Winners
Architecture Competition to support humanitarian projects in Africa by Balouo Salo Humanitarian Organization
Design by Ziyu Guo from China – the winner of the 2022 edition:
The Winners of the 2021 Kaira Looro Competition for a Women’s House in Africa
Kaira Looro 2021 Competition winning entry – project by Juan Pablo Lopez Isabella from Uruguay:
Kaira Looro Design Competition 2018 Winners
Firt Place Team: OMONIOALY346 from Italy
Project design by: Giacomo Spanio, Sergiu Cernea, Paolo Reali, Nicola Puppin
Location: Senegal, West Africa
Architecture Competitions
Architecture Competitions – architectural selection below:
The 4th Quadrant of Victory Square International Architectural Competition, Prague, Czech Republic
photo source : ONplan, photo: Libor Fojtík
4th Quadrant of Victory Square Prague Competition
Tartu Downtown Cultural Centre Architecture Competition, Estonia
Tartu Downtown Cultural Centre Competition
Adaptive Reuse: Design Transformations for Community Healthcare
2023 Epidemic Urbanism Initiative Design Competition
Senegal Buildings
Architecture in Senegal – architectural selection below:
University of Bambey Building, Diourbel
Design: IDOM
University of Bambey Building
House in Dakar
Design: SAOTA – Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen Architects and Antoni Associates
Senegal Property
Dakar Railway Station
Project Consultancy: Iglo Architects
Dakar Railway Station
Radisson Blu Hotel in Dakar
Design: SAOTA – Stefan Antoni Olmesdahl Truen Architects and Antoni Associates
Senegal Hotel Building
Solar Well, Sambacounda village, Senegal, Africa
Design: Raoul Vecchio Architect
Solar Well in Senegal
Comments / photos for the Kaira Looro 2025 Competition – African Architectural Contest for a Primary School Building page welcome
