Sponsored by a non-profit organisation in Barcelona for the protection of children, the maternity centre is located at the entrance to a hospital compound in the rural town of Woldyia in north-eastern Ethiopia. A shared open-air entrance serves the two areas of the facility: a maternity unit and separate residential facilities where future mothers from rural areas can reside before and after childbirth. The maternity unit comprises a reception area, an area for patients, and an operating area, each housed in rectangular blocks organised along a central corridor; the structure is steel and pine with structural insulated panels. The residential area is inspired by tukuls, traditional Ethiopian huts, and comprises a large open-air living area with kitchen, and five private structures contain bedrooms with toilets; the residential structures are steel-framed with bamboo infill, and the roofs are steel. Both the maternity unit and the residential structures feature natural ventilation and lighting.
Source: Aga Khan Trust for Culture
