Westminster students present recommendations for land development to British High Commissioner to Rwanda

Students from the University of Westminster joined senior colleagues, stakeholders from Rwanda, colleagues and students from the University of Rwanda and Her Excellency Alison Thorpe, the British High Commissioner to Rwanda and Westminster alumna, to present back their recommendations for how land near Kabuga in Rwanda could be developed as a sustainable community.

On 13 November, Westminster students joined a Rwanda land development stakeholder meeting to discuss the University's sustainable land development project. The QHT-funded project has given students studying on the Urban Design MA, International Planning and Sustainable Development MA and the Master of Architecture (MArch) (RIBA Pt II) courses the opportunity to visit Rwanda in June 2024 to develop their international sustainable planning skills for a live project.

During the QHT-funded trip in June, students spoke with landowners, government of Rwanda officials, including the Director General of Rwanda Housing Authority and the Chief City Planner for the City of Kigali, as well as architects operating in the local space, to work collaboratively on creating a plan to develop a 15 hectare piece of land as part of the Kigali City Masterplan. Taking on board information shared in key meetings and knowledge acquired during research expeditions on the land, the students were tasked to put together a design for the area which they showcased during the meeting.

Darrell Kofkin, Senior Lecturer in Social Entrepreneurship at the University of Westminster and Co-lead of the project, opened the event and spoke about the Rwanda journey the University has been on since the first QHT-funded project in 2017. He then welcomed Westminster Diplomacy Studies MA alumna Her Excellency Alison Thorpe, the British High Commissioner to Rwanda, who spoke about the importance of knowledge exchange and how Westminster's approach in Rwanda is supporting the collaboration between the UK and Rwanda.

She said: "I am really keen as High Commissioner in continuing to build partnerships between UK and Rwandan academic institutions. It is an area that I'm keen that the British High Commission support more, so this is a fantastic project."

She added: "There is real value to be found in academic exchanges between the UK and Rwanda. In terms of knowledge exchange and building capacities that's not a one-way street, that is most definitely a two-way street. I think there's as much that we can learn from the University of Rwanda as they can absolutely learn from us, and that knowledge exchange is so critical. Learning from each other's experiences and what that means for this project and beyond I think gives us a real opportunity."

David Mathewson, Course Leader of Urban Design MA and project Co-lead, then led an overview of the knowledge exchange project. This was followed by the student showcase, where students had the chance to present their vision for a masterplan to the group, outlining how they could work with key stakeholders to develop the land to best support the local community. They presented their designs, highlighting key considerations to be made, such as the impact of climate change, the importance of capturing the land's rich history and the texture of the ground.

Other guests included Westminster colleagues, the landowners and academic colleagues from the University of Rwanda and their students who will be engaged on the next phase of the project.

Mugel Khalafalla, who presented the plan to the group with Salima Afroz, Kainat Azadzoi and Neill Chauhan on behalf of the team, said: "Delivering the presentation was a truly meaningful experience. Sharing our vision and plans with stakeholders and landowners allowed us to highlight the transformative potential of this project. The positive engagement and valuable feedback we received underscored its importance, and I'm honoured to have been part of this discussion."

Darrell Kofkin said: "This project in Rwanda marks further stages in a journey focused on innovation in global knowledge exchange through experiential learning, based on collaboration across universities and businesses in alignment with government strategies."

David Mathewson added: "It was fantastic meeting with all the relevant stakeholders again in one place to tell the story of the project and take them through the work the students presented. It was fantastic brainstorming the next steps and setting out our collective vision for the future of this sustainable development. We look forward to the next meeting where we will progress this further."

This project directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities and 17: Partnerships for the Goals. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.

Find out more about the School of Architecture and Cities at the University of Westminster.

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