VITTI has been awarded the Foreign Architect of the Year at the 30th JK Architects of the Year Awards 2020, presented by JK Cement Ltd, India, for their project 'Ekmattra DBBL Academy, Haluaghat, Mymensingh,' according to a press release.
VITTI has previously received this prestigious award three more times from JK AYA. During a visit to Dhaka In 2001, Japanese student Hiroki Watanabe and a few of his friends took up the idea to provide education and safe shelter for destitute street children by establishing the EKMATTRA foundation.
In 2010, the foundation took the initiative to build an Academy in Haluaghat, Mymensingh to secure the lives of street children.
VITTI took the opportunity to serve this noble cause and addressed it as a pro-bono project.
Built on a 3.4acre land, the idea of the project was to create a place of learning, rest, and play. The design of the complex approached to be functionally and aesthetically minimalist but embedded into the natural settings of the site.
Considering the remoteness of the place and to make it cost-effective, an exposed burnt brick construction technique was used with accommodations for rainwater harvesting to facilitate clean water during dry seasons.
The academy now accommodates more than 160 children with teachers and support personnel, and is now a home for learning, hope, and freedom.
