The Akilah Institute for Women

Michelle Bove, Shurid Rahman, and Vrunda Vaghela arrive at Kigali International Airport.

Before they arrived in Rwanda, we warned the Architecture for Humanity team that they should be prepared for an incredibly busy two weeks!

We picked up Shurid Rahman, Vrunda Vaghela, Michelle Bove, and Joe Fuentes at the airport, gave them a few minutes to drop off their bags at the house, and then drove out to Bugesera to explore the Akilah campus.

Our partners from the Workforce Development Authority (WDA) and the District of Bugesera as well as members of our Advisory Committee joined us out at the Akilah site on the beautiful Saturday afternoon.

The whole team by the lake. AfH team: Vrunda, Shurid, Joe, and Michelle; Chong and Johnson, Workforce Development Authority; Philbert Kalisa, Akilah Advisory Committee member; Emmanuel, Education Director for Bugesera district; Amon, the engineer; Akilah team: Dave Hughes, Maria Ersvaer, and Elizabeth Davis; and Placide Magambo.

Walking around the dormitory building

Taking the team down to the lake

During their time in Rwanda, the AfH team wanted to spend as much time as possible out at the site. But they also wanted to meet with other architects and engineers in Kigali, as well as exploring schools and construction projects around the country, and meeting with the Akilah advisory committee and government partners.

We had lunch at Heaven Restaurant one of their first days in Kigali to review the itinerary for their time in Rwanda. So much to do in just 2 weeks!

The Workforce Development Authority is one of our partners within the Rwandan government. Responsible for overseeing the development of the vocational and technical training systems, they have provided crucial support and assistance to Akilah.

Chong Fook Yen from the Workforce Development Authority invited our team to have dinner at the Jambo Inn.

Because it has passed through the hands of many different organizations, there is a lot that we do not know about this campus. Most of our information has come from individuals who have lived in the surrounding community for decades. There is no existing land title or land use information in the mayor’s office because all of these documents were destroyed during the war. It sometimes takes creative detective work to figure out the exact uses of some parts of the site.

There is a large pit in between two of the classroom buildings. We still are not positive about its exact use, but assume that it was a water tank at one point.

An old water tank is now overgrown with weeds.

Lunch at Chez Lando to discuss progress and drawings.

The AfH team explored every inch of the Akilah site, including the open fields in the surrounding communities.

Elizabeth decided to show some women at the site that she could carry a baby like a Rwandan woman.

The AfH team visited the nearby Ntarama genocide memorial.

Dave Hughes, Shurid Rahman, and Michelle Bove examine one of the classroom buildings.

Joe Fuentes was the creative photographer throughout the trip and got stunning shots of the Akilah campus and Rwandan countryside.

We decided to walk the entire perimeter of the site and got caught in a rainstorm. Walking back through the beautiful fields on Lake Cyohoha.

Some neighbors in the community joined us for a walk around the site.

Amon, the engineer, shares cookies with kids in the nearby village.

Banana fields on the perimeter of the Akilah site.

A neighbor’s home.

The whole crew, after a long day at the Akilah site. Amon, the engineer, Joe Fuentes, Vrunda Vaghela, Michelle Bove, Shurid Rahman, Placide Mugambo, Elizabeth Davis, Maria Ersvaer, Muhire Enock, and Dave Hughes.

We had dinner with some young Rwandan friends. The AfH team was eager to ask questions about their high school experiences and to get a better understanding of the design of other Rwandan schools.

Meeting with members of the Rwanda Advisory Committee: Philbert Kalisa, Prince Kanani, and Albert Nzamukwereka.

The AfH team wanted to see the site as the sun was setting and rising. Solution: camp at the site! Dave bought a tent at Nakumatt and everyone spent the night there. Of course camping would not be complete without a bonfire.

Originally a home for the first German governor of Kigali during colonization, the Natural History Museum offers one of the most stunning views of Kigali. We took the Architecture for Humanity team to the Museum and to the Kigali Genocide Memorial at the beginning of their trip.

Natural History Museum in Kigali

Elizabeth and Vrunda at the Natural History Museum

Vrunda, Joe, and Dave enjoy some time off in Gisenyi.

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