Kamwokya Community Centre: the final piece of the urban mosaic
in ARCHITETTURA | architecture
© kéré architecture I Kamwokya Community Centre, General site plan.
Kamwokya, in Kampala, is a densely populated neighbourhood marked by precarious housing, inadequate infrastructure and severe environmental challenges. Yet amid narrow streets and makeshift dwellings moves a young and creative community, deeply connected to music and urban culture. Waste management remains one of the area’s most pressing issues: tons of uncollected refuse fuel health risks and practices such as flying toilets, while residents also face the threat of evictions linked to redevelopment projects. Despite this, initiatives like the Ghetto Research Lab and several youth organisations have launched resilience pathways—transforming organic waste into compost and plastic into resources, creating economic opportunities and strengthening social cohesion. Kamwokya thus becomes a microcosm of contrasts: marginality and precariousness on one side, creativity and solidarity on the other. It is an urban fragment that reflects the challenges of African urban growth, but also the potential for a more sustainable and inclusive future.
© kéré architecture I Kamwokya Community Centre, Site plan before the intervention and the three phaces of the new project.
At the heart of Kamwokya stands the Community Centre, designed by Kéré Architecture and inaugurated in 2022: a model of social architecture capable of transforming a vulnerable neighbourhood into a place of pride and identity. Born from the collaboration between the Kamwokya Christian Caring Community and the Ameropa Foundation, the centre—covering an area of 2,850 sqm with a gross floor area of about 200 sqm — functions as a free public infrastructure dedicated to sports, culture and education, with the aim of strengthening the community fabric and generating new opportunities for growth.
© arcomai I Kamwokya Community Centre.
The main entrance, located to the west, leads to a multipurpose hall used for neighbourhood meetings. Two additional access points, positioned to the northeast, are generally kept closed for security reasons. The space originally conceived as a covered gathering area is now used as a parking lot for boda‑boda, the motorcycle taxis that crisscross the capital every day: a guarded area where drivers from the neighbourhood leave their vehicles overnight. Although currently employed in a way that is not particularly strategic, this space could be converted into the café the centre appears to need, relocating the motorcycles along the northeast boundary through the rehabilitation of an existing ruin.
© arcomai I Kamwokya Community Centre.
The architectural layout develops around a central void, now occupied by a multisport field surrounded by informal bleachers that serve as places for meeting and social interaction. Thanks to an efficient drainage system, the area remains accessible throughout the year. Connected to the bleachers is a raised platform—a design solution responding to frequent flooding and introducing an artificial topography capable of organising different functions without resorting to rigid barriers. A large canopy shelters this outdoor space, making it usable for activities and community events both on sunny days and during the rainy season. The entire area can accommodate up to 400 seated people, becoming a broad communal platform adaptable to events, assemblies and collective social moments.
© kéré architecture I Kamwokya Community Centre, Ground floor plan.
On the opposite side of the field stands a building block characterised by the same steel butterfly roof structure, designed to enhance natural ventilation and collect rainwater in three tanks. Built with local materials and simple construction techniques to ensure durability and adaptability, the block houses a gym — currently without equipment and used for chess classes — an internet café, multipurpose rooms, a recording studio and several offices. All spaces are designed with robust masonry and natural cooling; the openings feature hopper windows with wooden panels instead of glass, an economical and functional choice to prevent accidental damage from balls. The water tower, built with a mixed structure of concrete, metal and bamboo, acts as an urban focal point and symbol of identity. The complex consists of three blocks (changing rooms, toilets and the rainwater collection room).
© kéré architecture I Kamwokya Community Centre, Cross sections..
The centre is not merely a building but a genuine community ecosystem. Through current sports activities, chess classes and digital services, the structure operates as a true catalyst for inclusion and sociality. Its architecture, sober and functional, restores dignity to a fragile urban context, transforming built space into a tool for empowerment. In this sense, the Kamwokya Community Centre demonstrates how architectural design can become both aesthetic research and resilient infrastructure, capable of generating belonging and future perspectives.
© arcomai I Kamwokya Community Centre.
Yet the centre’s real impact remains under expressed due to its still limited use: activities restricted to after-school hours; weekends and holiday periods significantly reduce its potential. To fully enhance this territorial hub, it is essential to ensure continuous programming even during inactive time slots. Promoting vocational training courses for local youth, hosting markets for local crafts and establishing a permanent schedule of exhibitions, festivals and cultural events would allow the centre to operate at full capacity, transforming idle hours into concrete opportunities for community growth.
© arcomai I Kamwokya Community Centre.
Today, the centre’s main critical issue concerns maintenance. Water shortages during the dry season — exacerbated by climate change — compromise the efficiency of services; at the same time, repairing or replacing worn elements such as window frames is complex and cannot fall solely on those who built the facility. The core problem lies in the absence of a participatory culture. Despite the socio-economic fragility of the context, no form of “active citizenship” has been fostered to encourage residents to voluntarily collaborate in caring for common goods. In complex contexts, building socially useful facilities is not enough: it is necessary to cultivate a culture of self-sufficiency, so that these architectures are truly felt as belonging to those who inhabit them every day.
© arcomai I Kamwokya Community Centre.