Mafalala pt. 2 | Alessandro Matta Architettura

Due to the high birth rate in Mozambique, it was decided to design a structure able to support the hospital: the Maternity House. The idea is to create a building in which people who still believes in magic and traditional medicine, will be able to gain trust in the
health system. That is way the design takes both aspects into consideration. The shape of the operating room reminds the traditional Palhota house; a truncated cone lets the light pass through, giving the inside space a mystical appearance. The building is made of 25x25 blocks with three operating blocks, five recovery blocks, a kindergarten, spaces for maternity courses and public clinics. As in the housing blocks, the recovery blocks has a collective space with a big tree and a bench sunken in the soil.