Masoro Learning and Sports Center

Introduction

The Masoro Learning and Sports Center is an education and sports facility in rural Rwanda, East Africa, designed and built by the nonprofit architecture firm GA Collaborative. The project was created in collaboration with Kate Spade New York’s social enterprise initiative On Purpose, Shooting Touch, Gardens for Health, Africa Yoga Project, Mind Leaps, Resonate, Dot Rwanda, and African Entrepreneur Center.  Without these partners, the project would not be where it is today. Throughout the design and build of this project, key design considerations included community connectedness, environmental leadership, flexible, adaptive, and resilient infrastructure. 

Local context

Located in Masoro, Rwanda, about one hour north of the country’s capital, Kigali, the Learning and Sports Center was completed and opened in July of 2019. There were more than 300 local masons on the site for the six months of construction time. Men and women from within 10km of the site participated in the construction of their new community center. This allowed for the center to be designed and managed by the end-users.

 

Site planning

The site of the Masoro Learning and Sports Center is 2,717 sqm and contains a library, 2 classrooms (including an IT classroom), locker room, program coordinator offices, snack bar, yoga room, basketball court and outdoor auditorium. Porches with generous glass fronts allow for indirect natural light and beautiful views of the eucalyptus trees in the valley and of newly planted demonstration gardens. The building roofs contribute to a rainwater collection system which provides grey water for showers, toilets and irrigation. The landscape hosts outdoor seating along the existing soccer field and new basketball court that can host more than 1,000 viewers. All non-structural bricks on site were used throughout the site as paving.  

Materials

Almost everything on site was handcrafted, from steel doors and window frames to complex trusses to stackable furniture and lighting fixtures. Traditional design elements were integrated on reed ceilings and woven door fillings. With our design we introduced modern systems, carefully pushed boundaries of construction methods and spent time to thoroughly test and improve mock-ups. 

Final notes

The center has been formally opened and plans to grow with the community over time. Since the opening additional restrooms have been built (above photo) to accommodate the basketball and soccer games when the learning center is closed. The future of the learning center is bright and plans to host more classrooms, demonstration gardens and a variety of workshops.