•Project Name: Mera Nagar Housing, Karachi, Pakistan.
•Project Location: Deh Nagan, Karachi
•Date: 2010-2015
Phase1 50% Housing Units, Community Centers, School and Bazaar
Phase 2 50% Housing Units, Masjid, Vocational Centre, Bazaar and other Amenities
•Client: PHC and AAA
•Description and number of beneficiaries/users: 1773 housing units for low income families (average 7 persons/ household)
•Major funding:People's Housing Cell
•Cost per housing unit: Average Rs 900/sq ft
•Concept/ Lead Architects: Mahboob Khan and Yawar Jillani (Arcop Pvt,Ltd; Architects on Record)
•Design Team Members: Adnan Asdar, Hina Siddiqui and Khwaja Atif
•Structural Engineers: Mushtaq & Bilal
•Electrical/ Infrastructure: Halcrow
•Contractor/manufacturer: Subcontracted by AAA (Project Managers)

Project Goal:
•Improve the human spirit to enable and empower the people
•Provide affordable housing and engender community living and participation
•Respond to our growing need for clean water, power, shelter, healthcare, education

Project Description:
The Sindh Government statistics depict a large deficit in housing provision in the province for the marginalized section of the society, approximately 100,000 housing units p.a. As a result the Government realizes that addressing affordable shelter is a key issue for a sustainable future. Accordingly, a Housing Program for the poor has been selected as one of the priorities, and a People’s Housing Cell has been created, aimed to utilize the latest low cost technologies.

It is based on Public-Private Partnerships with developers and builders, and the cell will work in collaboration with NGOs and housing experts. Low-cost houses will be subsidized from the profit generated through the sale of commercial properties. As a result, a low income housing/township scheme Mera Nagar is under construction on 50 acres of land at Deh Nagan in Karachi. It is a Comprehensive Township Scheme which covers the development of low cost housing units, commercial areas, recreational/amenities areas (parks/playgrounds, health care, schools and infrastructure facilities (road network, sewerage disposal system, water supply, electricity, water treatment plant). The scheme caters to the monthly income bracket earning of not more than $175/month/household (Rs 10-15,000/month).
The Master Plan has been developed in an area along the River Lyari. The building blocks have been placed with consideration to the existing variation in site topography and contours. A central pedestrian spine runs through the development flanked with building blocks on either side.
This low-rise high density scheme utilizes the horizontal arrangement parallel to the communal spine and the housing units are grouped around intimate open spaces. Despite the modern facades the layouts of units are traditional in principle and sensitive to the privacy requirements of the residents.
The overall design is environmentally sustainable as the individual housing units and their clustered placement around smaller open spaces make maximum utilization of Karachi’s south western breeze. Concepts of cross ventilation within the housing units in addition to communal courts acting as wind catchers have been incorporated.

Thus the Master Plan revolves around the following key points :
a) Contextual response to the site topography, wind direction and solar path.
b) Energy consciousness/cost consciousness
c) Use of indigenous materials and local knowledge
d) Self sustainability through community development

The Scheme aims towards community development with a capacity building and training program for creating self- sustainability. This is to be accomplished through the development of a Vocational Training Center where the community women,young men and children will be given workshops in skill enhancement. The housing scheme will be working in collaboration with established NGOs in the allocated amenity plots, including The Hunar Foundation (THF- a non-profit organization established in February 2008 with the aim towards a sustainable economic growth through human resource development ) and The Citizen’s Foundation ( TCF- a non-profit organization set up in 1995 providing education to underprivileged children in socially deprived areas of the country).It is envisaged that the community development model will inspire residents to take ownership of public spaces, and initiate the establishment and maintenance of councils/committees to overlook the housing development.

Location