The Ngarannam Vision: Architecture for Displaced Persons in Western Africa.
Article by Peace Ogunjemilua, first published at Rethinking the Future (RTF) © 2026
Aerial view (oshinowostudio.com)
Background
For many people in Ngarannam, the memory of home lived only in stories.
The village, located in Mafa Local Government Area of Borno State in northeastern Nigeria, West Africa, was once a peaceful rural settlement. Families cultivated, children grew up knowing all the paths and courtyards, and different ethnicities lived side by side. The Kanuri, Fulani, Shuwa and Gamargu communities shared markets, social life and daily routines that developed over generations.
Then, in 2015, the Boko Haram (ISWAP) guerrilla war and insurgency, which was at its peak, reached the village. Violence swept through the community and left most of it destroyed. Homes were burned, livelihoods collapsed, and the social structures that held the settlement together were destroyed almost overnight. Like many communities across Borno State, the residents of Ngarannam fled to internally displaced persons camps, not knowing if they would ever return to the place they once called home.
For years, the village existed mainly as a memory. Rebuilding it required more than building houses. It required restoring a sense of belonging. This challenge became the basis of the United Nations Development Programme's Ngarannam resettlement project.
Ọ̀shínọ́wọ̀: Mastermind Architect
Founder (Oshinowo Studio)
Architect Tosin Ọ̀shínọ́wọ̀, founder of Lagos-based architecture practice CmDesign Atelier, had already established a strong reputation within Nigerian architecture. Her professional experience included working with global architecture firms such as Skidmore, Owings and Merrill in London and the Office for Metropolitan Architecture in Rotterdam.
Despite this international background, her approach in Ngarannam focused on understanding local culture rather than imposing an external design language.
Before drawing the first plans, she spent time speaking with members of the displaced community. The conversations focused on memory. What did their homes look like before the conflict? How were spaces organised? What made a house feel familiar?
One of the most important elements that emerged from these conversations was the Zaure. In Kanuri and Islamic domestic architecture, the Zaure serves as a reception area that separates public space from private family areas. Visitors are received there without entering the inner courtyard of the home.
For the residents of Ngarannam, the Zaure was not just a spatial feature. It represented a cultural rhythm of daily life. Leaving it out would have meant building houses that felt unfamiliar. So it was included in every housing unit.
From Ruins To Renewal
The completed development includes approximately five hundred housing units organised as a planned settlement rather than as scattered individual buildings. The layout reflects the structure of the original village, allowing residents to return to neighbourhood patterns that feel recognisable.
The houses themselves are modest but thoughtfully designed. They use locally available materials and construction techniques that residents can maintain themselves. Earth-toned finishes blend in with the surrounding landscape, with features like a coral colour created with Tyrolean plaster mixed with local soil. The colour choice came from the community and also reduces the need for expensive paint maintenance.
Climatic considerations also shaped the architecture. The buildings incorporate ventilation strategies and shaded spaces that respond to the hot climate of northeastern Nigeria.
The masterplan goes beyond housing. A primary health clinic has been added so residents can access basic health care in the community. A market allows for the return of trade and small-scale economic activity. Community spaces and shaded pavilions provide areas for gathering and social interaction.
An important part of the construction process involved hiring local contractors and labour. This meant that the construction skills developed during the project remained in the community after completion.
In this sense, the project produced both housing and local knowledge.
Value & Dignity
Projects like Ngarannam remind us that architecture is not only about physical structures. It is also about the social and cultural systems that buildings support.
For families returning after years of displacement, moving into houses that reflect familiar cultural patterns helps rebuild confidence and identity. The presence of courtyards, reception spaces, and community areas reconnects residents with ways of living that existed before the conflict. The project also shows the importance of culturally informed design in humanitarian work. When housing reflects the traditions and climate of a place, it becomes easier for residents to maintain and adapt those spaces over time.
Perhaps the most meaningful outcome is the return to everyday life. Children growing up in Ngarannam today are not living in temporary shelters. They are growing up in a village designed to support community life again.
In a region where conflict once erased an entire settlement, thoughtful design helped rebuild more than houses. It helped restore the idea of home.
References
CmDesign Atelier. 2022. Homes for Ngarannam Project.
https://www.oshinowostudio.com/projects/ngarannam/
Leading Ladies Africa. 2026. Tosin Oshinowo. The Woman Who Gave 500 Displaced Families a Reason to Return Home.
https://leadingladiesafrica.org/2026/03/03/tosin-oshinowo-the-woman-who-gave-500-displaced-families-a-reason-to-return-home/
Facing the Challenge of the Islamic State in West Africa Province. https://www.crisisgroup.org/rpt/africa/nigeria/273-facing-challenge-islamic-state-west-africa-province
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