The Kaira Looro Architecture Competition 2026 returns with a renewed humanitarian mission: to design a Community Center in a rural area of southern Senegal, conceived as a place of encounter, inclusion, and shared growth.
Organised by the Balouo Salo Humanitarian Organization, Kaira Looro stands apart as the only international architecture competition that is entirely non-profit, reinvesting 100% of its proceeds into real humanitarian projects across Sub-Saharan Africa.
At the heart of the 2026 brief lies a simple yet urgent question: how can architecture support communities where shared spaces are scarce, but collective life is essential?
A Community Center Designed to Belong
Participants are invited to envision an architecture that becomes the beating heart of community life.
The proposed Community Center will host educational, cultural, and social activities, offering space for learning, assemblies, workshops, craftsmanship, and creative initiatives.
More than a building, the project is imagined as a symbol of resilience and hope—a place where identity is strengthened and participation encouraged. Architecture here is not monumental, but deeply rooted in everyday life, designed to serve long-term social development.
Humanitarian Architecture Through Self-Construction
The competition calls for a self-build, humanitarian approach, avoiding heavy machinery and specialised labour.
Designs must prioritise local materials, simple construction techniques, and sustainable solutions, ensuring that the project can be built, maintained, and appropriated by the community itself.
In this framework, architecture becomes a tool for empowerment—not only shaping space, but enabling dignity, knowledge transfer, and social cohesion.
A Jury of Global Architectural Voices
The 2026 edition marks a milestone in the competition’s history, with a jury composed of some of the most influential figures in contemporary architecture, including Kengo Kuma, David Adjaye, Benedetta Tagliabue, Amanda Levete, Manuel Aires Mateus, Mario Cucinella, Giancarlo Mazzanti, and emmanuelle moureaux, among others.
This exceptional panel positions Kaira Looro 2026 as a global reference point for humanitarian architecture.
Opportunities Beyond the Competition
True to its mission of supporting young talent, Kaira Looro offers not only prize money but professional growth opportunities.
The first prize includes the realisation of the winning project as a humanitarian initiative, a €6,000 award, and an internship at Kengo Kuma & Associates in Tokyo.
Additional prizes include internships at leading international studios such as EMBT, Adjaye Associates, Amanda Levete Architects, and SBGA Blengini Ghirardelli.
All awarded projects will gain international visibility through publications and the official competition book.
Dates and Participation
Registration for the competition opens on 8 January 2026, with participation open to individuals or teams, provided at least one member is under the age of 35.
Projects must be submitted by 7 June 2026, with winners announced on 7 July 2026.
Designing With Responsibility
Kaira Looro 2026 is more than a competition—it is an invitation to rethink the role of architecture in the world today.
Here, design is measured not by spectacle, but by its ability to serve, include, and endure.
In placing creativity at the service of human dignity, the competition asks architects to imagine how small-scale, thoughtful architecture can become a powerful agent of change—one community at a time.
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