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Mtshali Home
Mtshali Home
Umbumbulu, Umbumbulu, South Africa
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Other Projects by Ubuntu Design Group
Mtshali Home
Umbumbulu, Umbumbulu, South Africa
Firm
Type
STATUS
Built
YEAR
2017
SIZE
0 sqft - 1000 sqft
BUDGET
$10K - 50K
Like many growing metropolitan regions, eThekwini faces an urgent housing crisis. In the wake of the gross inequities of the Apartheid era, South Africa centralized its housing strategy through the well-intended Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP). Despite these efforts, the country still faces a staggering backlog of 2.6 million affordable housing units.
Among the 2,400 people living in rural homesteads around Umbumbulu is the Mtshali family. They currently reside in a small outbuilding on the homestead of a family friend, Mr. Makhanya, located near the R603 at the far eastern edge of Ward 96.
In many ways, Mr. and Mrs. Mtshali represent some of the most vulnerable members of eThekwini’s population, living in one of the municipality’s most remote areas. However, if a city is only as strong as its most vulnerable citizens, then the Mtshalis also symbolize an incredible opportunity—to cultivate productivity, joy, resilience, and self-reliance in places where they are least expected.
Our client engaged us to help unlock this potential by collaborating with the Umbumbulu community to design a prototype for dignified, affordable housing. Through an extensive “listening to build” process, we ensured that the community itself drove the design of their homes. This led to the creation of the Mtshali home and a culturally contextual master plan for the greater Umbumbulu area.
I initiated this project as a student at Andrews University. Following the design phase, I took a year off to personally build a home for the Mtshali family—turning a vision of dignified housing into a reality.
Among the 2,400 people living in rural homesteads around Umbumbulu is the Mtshali family. They currently reside in a small outbuilding on the homestead of a family friend, Mr. Makhanya, located near the R603 at the far eastern edge of Ward 96.
In many ways, Mr. and Mrs. Mtshali represent some of the most vulnerable members of eThekwini’s population, living in one of the municipality’s most remote areas. However, if a city is only as strong as its most vulnerable citizens, then the Mtshalis also symbolize an incredible opportunity—to cultivate productivity, joy, resilience, and self-reliance in places where they are least expected.
Our client engaged us to help unlock this potential by collaborating with the Umbumbulu community to design a prototype for dignified, affordable housing. Through an extensive “listening to build” process, we ensured that the community itself drove the design of their homes. This led to the creation of the Mtshali home and a culturally contextual master plan for the greater Umbumbulu area.
I initiated this project as a student at Andrews University. Following the design phase, I took a year off to personally build a home for the Mtshali family—turning a vision of dignified housing into a reality.
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