Affordable house design competition: IIL, IAP hold award ceremony for winners

International Industries Limited (IIL) in collaboration with Institute of Architects Pakistan (IAP) organized an award ceremony to recognize the efforts of IIL-IAP Affordable House Design Competition winners here at the IAP House on Wednesday night.
In line with PM's Naya Housing Initiative for providing affordable housing to the millions of people in low income segment of Pakistan, IIL and IAP Karachi conducted an Affordable Housing Design Competition in which countrywide professional & student Architects participated and submitted their designs.
As per the event organizers, these designs were judged by a panel of expert jury members including Dr Suneela Ahmed Assistant Professor NED UET & Convener of Affordable housing design competition, Dr Shoaib Ahmad JPC Chair Professor NED - UET, Architect Rashi Rasheed CEO of SR Design Works, Kalim Ahmed Siddiqui, the Principal Architect KS & Associates, Ar. Saifullah Sami the Principal Architect of Saifullah Sami Architect, and Ar. Arif Changezi who is the President IAP.
The event was not only attended by various renowned Architects but also included key dignitaries from Housing, Builders & Construction Industry.
The chief guest of the event was Zaigham Rizvi the Chair of Prime Minister Task Committee on Affordable Housing, and the event was also graced by Shehzad Roy who is UNODC Goodwill Ambassador.
The competition's primarily focus was to engage Pakistan's Architectural Community in developing architectural designs for Affordable housing using locally available quick construction / pre-fabrication techniques and technological innovations to assist in the execution of the Government of Pakistan's dream of affordable housing.
Zaigham Rizvi praised IIL's commitment and involvement in actively engaging in activities related to affordable housing initiative. He added, "Affordable housing is not just an issue in poor countries; it is an issue in nearly every country."
"We want to engage young architects & engineers in solving the nation's problems. In the village, people are not used to high-rise buildings, so there will be at most one-storey buildings," said Rizvi.
"We in collaboration with IIL are working on a pilot project in rural Punjab. It is hoped that this pilot project will be a role model to scale up nationwide once deemed successful." Rizvi added.
"Low/affordable cost does not necessarily mean low quality construction. We should focus on maintaining high quality standards & quick construction while keeping the cost within reach of moderate income individual," Zaigham Rizvi emphasized while ending the speech.
Ar. Arif Changezi President IAP; Ar. Ramiz Baig, Chairman IAP Karachi Chapter; and Dr Suneela Ahmed, Assistant Professor NED UET & Convener of Affordable housing design competition acknowledged the efforts of all jury members, IAP committee and IIL towards Affordable Housing Initiatives.
Awards & prizes were distributed to the winners by the distinguished guests after the brief presentation of their winning architectural blueprints. Winners included: Ar. Ahmed Mian, Ar. Adil Kerai, Ar. Shahid Abdulla, Ar. Murtaza Mehdi Rizvi, Ar. Ukkasha Numan, Ar. Arif Khan & Ar. SikanderAjam.
In concluding speech Riyaz T. Chinoy CEO of IIL said, "Pakistan is a dynamic and ever-evolving Nation with endless possibilities. The country is on the cusp of a construction revolution that IIL is poised to lead with its innovative products that facilitate quick construction while retaining the strength of steel."
"The Affordable Housing scheme is a great initiative which will help to the improve quality of lives of many people across the Nation. We would like to extend our support to this initiative and would like to work with the concerned government authorities to reduce the cost & time of the affordable housing projects without compromising on the quality of the construction," Chinoy added.
"Other than organizing the affordable housing competition, IIL is proactively involved in numerous projects of constructing multiple model of affordable houses of various dimensions& layouts (256 sq.ft. upto 792 sq.ft.).
These houses are suitable for all weather conditions and topographies thereby lending applicability across the Pakistan.
IIL has also released a complete architectural plan along with a transparent cost structure in order to engage the public and concerned ministries. Under this scheme individual houses can be constructed in as little as 10 days using IIL products, Chinoy said. "As per company's commitment towards betterment of society, IIL will always be at the forefront of supporting such initiatives", he concluded.