Bidibidi in Uganda planned to become a city with schools, health centre and sports fields
Bjarke Ingels Group presented an urban plan for Bidibidi that keeps room for about 230,000 residents and adds capacity for 155,000 more.
Architectural studio Bjarke Ingels Group has unveiled a new urban plan to transform the Bidibidi refugee settlement in northern Uganda into an organized city with homes, schools, a health centre and sports facilities.
The settlement today hosts about 230,000 refugees. The proposal allocates space for an additional 155,000 people so that the area can grow beyond its current camp-like condition into a place with permanent infrastructure and local economic activity.
Plan highlights
Under the design, housing blocks would be grouped around shared courtyards to give families communal spaces for cooking, socialising and work. The plan also includes a covered market, workshops, a technical school, a health centre, sports fields and cultural spaces.
The scheme is presented as part of the project "Cities of the Future for Refugees." It aims to phase the settlement’s evolution so services and public spaces are introduced while the population is still concentrated, rather than waiting for informal growth to dictate outcomes.
Planners say the approach seeks to provide a foundation for local livelihoods and public services that could allow Bidibidi to operate more like a city than a temporary camp.
Implementation details, timelines and financing sources were not provided in the presentation.
Photo: Dezen)
