174 Built examples
The 5,000 m^2 research and training centre
includes three distinct groups of buildings:
a teaching and administrative centre,
including library and restaurant; housing for
72 students; and houses for 9 professors.
All walls, vaults and domes were built from
stabilised soil blocks that were manufac-
tured from local soil on site. The vaults and
the domes were erected in the Nubian tech-
nique without formwork. The exterior sur-
faces were plastered with a mud plaster
that is stabilised with lime and cement.
The project was started in 1981 and com-
pleted in 1984. In 1992 it received the Aga
Khan Award for Architecture.Architect: Philippe Glauser, Zurich, Switzerland
Engineer: Ladji Camara
Financing: EZE (Evangelische Zentralstelle für
Entwicklungshilfe, Bonn-Bad Godesberg), DDA
(Direction de la coopération en développement
et de l’Aide humanitaire, Bern), IPD (Institut
Panafricain pour le Développement)