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Victoria Masagbor and Elizabeth Masagbor - Proposal

Meeting the People's Needs Through Research

Korukoru is a small community under Akinyele local government area, Oyo state, and has been in existence for over three centuries. Through the years, their only source of water which is a stream has remained stagnant. Most houses, lack toilets and this has led to the practice of open defication. Weak bricks, cracked and patchy walls, rusted zinc roofs these are the characteristics of most buildings which the people call their homes some of which have collapsed due to the wearing out of the brick walls.

A community researcher will play a crucial role in the initial phase of the design through the collection and analysing of information obtained from the people. This information will be employed during the design phase. The site, in which the project is to be executed, will be examined by a land surveyor . The site is a land with an area of 19440m2. Its size can accommodate the housing for the intended population. Its location also allows easy movement of building materials and resources.

Funding is essential in executing projects and presents itself as a challenge for projects of this nature. Funding from the State government will be a lot easier to get since Korukoru is a community in Oyo state. These funds will be able to cater for the provision of building materials and also professionals who will be involved in the project. Support from the Local government as well as Non- governmental organizations will be of great benefit in managing other minor aspects in the execution of the project.

A portion of the total population will be involved in the research process. The information they will provide, will be based on the questions which they will be asked. Questions such as the resspondents age, gender, occupation, level of education, level of income, respondents religion, their position in the family, family type, family size, number of children, the age range between members of the family, what spaces and facilities their current housing lack, what spaces they require in their homes, what aspects in their existing homes do they find unappealing and also aspects they would love to retain.

Community involvement is essential in creating a sense of responsibility towards the welfare and growth of the people in every individual. The members of the community will be involved in every phase starting from the research to the construction phase and finally the post construction phase. Men, women youths as well as children will be assigned task based on their capabilities. They will support and also learn from one another and this will strengthen their bonds. Attending to the needs of people in terms of housing, influences residential satisfaction and this is the responsibility of the architect. The existing condition of the people is a problem, in order to solve this problem, the architect and the rest of the design team should involve them in every phase.