Axonometric Drawing of Construction in Progress - Phase 2. Drawing by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.
ZONGO WATER PROJECT
The Zongo Water Project is about using water as a way to improve the quality of life for the Zongo Community, a minority Islamic settlement located in Cape Coast, Ghana. Even though this migrant community has lived and traded in the city of Cape Coast for over a century, the residents are still treated as outsiders and most of the buildings don’t have access to the city’s public infrastructure. While the problems of flood and drought, sanitation, hygiene, and erosion are germane to the entirety of Ghana’s Central region, these issues are of particular concern for the visibly impoverished Zongo community. Rather than developing a master plan to be executed by the government, this human-centered approach creates a sustainable, long-term, community-based strategy for a new water infrastructure through the processes of engagement, education, empowerment, and sustainability.
Authorship (Academic - UVA Thesis and MIT): Emily Williamson in collaboration with local stakeholders in Cape Coast; Advisor: Professor Robin Dripps, Funded by MIT's Public Service Center.
*To Download Zongo Water Project Booklet 1, please follow this link.
*To Download Zongo Water Project Booklet 2, please follow this link.
*To Download Zongo Water Project Booklet 3, please follow this link.
*To Download the Chicago Art Journal about the early design stages of this Project, please follow this link.
“Zongo Water Project” Booklet Covers. Graphics by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.
Left: Water Infrastructure + Public Life “Kit of Parts” - Roof, Edge, Ground, Weir, and Ridge. Drawings by Emily Williamson Ibrahim. Right: Wet and Dry Looped Cycles for Cooking, Eating, and Washing. Diagram by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.
Zongo Urban Landscape in Cape Coast - Existing Conditions. Photograph Collage by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.
Section of Washing and Cooking Structure Showing Water and Porosity. Drawing by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.
Axonometric of Washing and Cooking Structure Showing Water Drainage. Drawing by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.
Model of Roof, Edge, and Ground Conditions Through Sample Major Drain in the Zongo. Model by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.
The Cape Coast Watershed, Zongo Watershed, and Major Drain Watershed in the Zongo. Drawing by Emily Williamson Ibrahim.