Following up on my thesis post, a few of you raised a critical question in the comments here and in the Somali Architecture: What happens when it floods?

Apart from the unfair cultural association with "poorness", water damage is the single biggest skepticism people have about traditional earth construction. We have all seen raw, unengineered mud structures get damaged during heavy rainy seasons in various parts of Somalia.

To make earth work for modern Somalia, we have to look past raw mud and look at engineered earth tectonics. In architecture, the solution relies on a simple rule: give the building "a good pair of boots and a good umbrella."

Here is how the attached detail section from my thesis solves this in plain English without any architectural BS:

1. The Flood-Proofing Strategy

• The "Boots" (Waterproof Base): Look at the very bottom of the drawing where the wall meets the dirt. We never let clay touch the ground directly. Instead, we build a raised foundation plinth out of local stone. This lifts the earth walls well above flash flood levels, keeping the clay completely dry.
• The "Umbrella" (Massive Overhangs): At the top, the low-sloped roof extends a massive 3.8 metres outwards past the columns. During heavy downpours, this giant umbrella throws rainwater far away from the structure into a dedicated simple drainage channel. This creates a protected, 2-metre-wide shaded corridor for people to walk through or even sit and socialise comfortably.
• The Secret Recipe (Stabilisation): The walls aren't actually just wet mud. as they use Compressed Stabilised Earth Blocks. With CSEBs, we take local clay and soil, compress it tightly with a mechanical press, and blend it with a tiny amount (5% to 8%) of lime or cement. This triggers a chemical reaction that permanently turns the dirt into a stone-like material that cannot dissolve in water.

>

2. The Passive Cooling Ceiling (The Double-Roof System)

If you look inside the room in the section drawing or the second drawing, you will notice a curved, vaulted ceiling with openings and with a massive air gap between it and the corrugated metal roof overhead. This "double-roof" system completely eliminates the need for high-energy AC through three natural forces:

• The Cultural & Structural Vault: This curve is a direct reference to the high central geometry of our traditional cariish mud huts. Structurally, brick vault engineering allows us to span a massive public room without cluttering the floor with dozens of internal columns.
• The 45cm Thermal Mass: The walls are a soaring 4 metres high and 45cm thick. This massive thickness acts as a shield blocking the sun's intense heat from penetrating inside, especially during the hottest parts of the day.
• The Venturi Vacuum Effect: The metal roof sheet is sloped at a gentle 5° to shed rainwater, but it also creates a constricted airway directly above the vaults. The prevailing winds enter this narrow gap and naturally accelerate.
• The Micro-Climate Pull: This high-speed air creates a low-pressure vacuum right above the ceiling openings, actively sucking the rising hot air out of the room. Because of this vacuum, fresh air is drawn into the building much quicker through the window shutters. Because the incoming air is pulled from the 3.8m corridor, which is a naturally shaded micro-climate area, the air entering the building is already pre-cooled.

3. Honest Engineering: Smart Concrete Integration

With that being said, to be completely realistic, concrete wasn't completely banned. However, it was used sparingly and strategically only where earth simply cannot perform.

It caps the top of the 45cm walls as a structural ring beam to lock the building together, and forms the internal beams where the heavy brick columns require structural reinforcement.

By modernising these traditional techniques, we get a climate-resilient civic building perfectly adapted to Somali needs, safely utilising our local soil whilst saving valuable electricity for where it is actually needed.

Do you think the hesitation to use earth back home is purely down to these technical fears about water, or is it a cultural perception where imported concrete is strictly seen as a status symbol of wealth?

Following up on my thesis post, a few of you raised a critical question in the comments here and in the main Somalia group: What happens when it floods?

Apart from the unfair cultural association with "poorness", water damage is the single biggest skepticism people have about traditional earth construction. We have all seen raw, unengineered mud structures get damaged during heavy rainy seasons in various parts of Somalia.

To make earth work for modern Somalia, we have to look past raw mud and look at engineered earth tectonics. In architecture, the solution relies on a simple rule: give the building "a good pair of boots and a good umbrella."

Here is how the attached detail section from my thesis solves this in plain English without any architectural BS:

1. The Flood-Proofing Strategy

• The "Boots" (Waterproof Base): Look at the very bottom of the drawing where the wall meets the dirt. We never let clay touch the ground directly. Instead, we build a raised foundation plinth out of local stone. This lifts the earth walls well above flash flood levels, keeping the clay completely dry.
• The "Umbrella" (Massive Overhangs): At the top, the low-sloped roof extends a massive 3.8 metres outwards past the columns. During heavy downpours, this giant umbrella throws rainwater far away from the structure into a dedicated simple drainage channel. This creates a protected, 2-metre-wide shaded corridor for people to walk through or even sit and socialise comfortably.
• The Secret Recipe (Stabilisation): The walls aren't actually just wet mud. as they use Compressed Stabilised Earth Blocks. With CSEBs, we take local clay and soil, compress it tightly with a mechanical press, and blend it with a tiny amount (5% to 8%) of lime or cement. This triggers a chemical reaction that permanently turns the dirt into a stone-like material that cannot dissolve in water.

>Note: The umbrella and boots are extra cautious engineering steps to extend the building's longevity with almost zero maintenance.

2. The Passive Cooling Ceiling (The Double-Roof System)

If you look inside the room in the section drawing or the second drawing, you will notice a curved, vaulted ceiling with openings and with a massive air gap between it and the corrugated metal roof overhead. This "double-roof" system completely eliminates the need for high-energy AC through three natural forces:

• The Cultural & Structural Vault: This curve is a direct reference to the high central geometry of our traditional cariish mud huts. Structurally, brick vault engineering allows us to span a massive public room without cluttering the floor with dozens of internal columns.
• The 45cm Thermal Mass: The walls are a soaring 4 metres high and 45cm thick. This massive thickness acts as a shield blocking the sun's intense heat from penetrating inside, especially during the hottest parts of the day.
• The Venturi Vacuum Effect: The metal roof sheet is sloped at a gentle 5° to shed rainwater, but it also creates a constricted airway directly above the vaults. The prevailing winds enter this narrow gap and naturally accelerate.
• The Micro-Climate Pull: This high-speed air creates a low-pressure vacuum right above the ceiling openings, actively sucking the rising hot air out of the room. Because of this vacuum, fresh air is drawn into the building much quicker through the window shutters. Because the incoming air is pulled from the 3.8m corridor, which is a naturally shaded micro-climate area, the air entering the building is already pre-cooled.

3. Honest Engineering: Smart Concrete Integration

With that being said, to be completely realistic, concrete wasn't completely banned. However, it was used sparingly and strategically only where earth simply cannot perform.

It caps the top of the 45cm walls as a structural ring beam to lock the building together, and forms the internal beams where the heavy brick columns require structural reinforcement.

By modernising these traditional techniques, we get a climate-resilient civic building perfectly adapted to Somali needs, safely utilising our local soil whilst saving valuable electricity for where it is actually needed.

Do you think the hesitation to use earth back home is purely down to these technical fears about water, or is it a cultural perception where imported concrete is strictly seen as a status symbol of wealth?

A few weeks ago, I posted a brief update about presenting my MA thesis. And recently, I was blessed to present it to architecture students across different universities in Xamar, Alxamdulillah!

Honestly, I was incredibly humbled by the messages from people asking where they could read the full document. At the same time, I’ve been closely following the recent brilliant post in this sub Somali Architecture regarding the transition away from energy-inefficient concrete towards climate-resilient, earth-based construction.

Since my research directly investigates these exact themes, I wanted to share the official publication link with the community to help ground our collective ideas in a rigorous architectural framework.

What the Thesis Explores:

- Moving Beyond Concrete: The project directly challenges the unsustainable, imported building trends currently dominating our urban spaces.

- Traditional Materiality: It investigates how traditional mud construction methods can be modernised to provide natural thermal mass. This drastically reduces the need for expensive, energy-intensive active cooling, whilst restoring a sense of pride in our local soil.

- Spatial Hierarchy: Beyond materials, it explores how architecture can aid post-conflict civic recovery by creating spaces that naturally facilitate community dialogue, safety and assembly while being deeply rooted in our traditional Somali spatial patterns.

For those interested, the full text (currently the open-access version) can be downloaded officially from the Swedish academic archive here: Thesis Link

I’ve attached a few key pages below, including the abstract and some of the technical and visual elements of the project. I would love to hear thoughts from fellow architects, students or anyone interested in how to build non-generic architecture based on Somali needs and culture.

How do we best bridge the gap between academic research in the diaspora and actual, tangible construction on the ground back home?

This was my core challenge whilst writing this thesis, and my goal moving forward is to actively promote earth-based architecture in Somalia, inshallah!

A few weeks ago, I posted a brief update about presenting my MA thesis. And recently, I was blessed to present it to architecture students across different universities in Xamar, Alxamdulillah!

Honestly, I was incredibly humbled by the messages from people asking where they could read the full document. At the same time, I’ve been closely following the recent brilliant post in this sub regarding the transition away from energy-inefficient concrete towards climate-resilient, earth-based construction.

Since my research directly investigates these exact themes, I wanted to share the official publication link with the community to help ground our collective ideas in a rigorous architectural framework.

What the Thesis Explores:

- Moving Beyond Concrete: The project directly challenges the unsustainable, imported building trends currently dominating our urban spaces.

- Traditional Materiality: It investigates how traditional mud construction methods can be modernised to provide natural thermal mass. This drastically reduces the need for expensive, energy-intensive active cooling, whilst restoring a sense of pride in our local soil.

- Spatial Hierarchy: Beyond materials, it explores how architecture can aid post-conflict civic recovery by creating spaces that naturally facilitate community dialogue, safety and assembly while being deeply rooted in our traditional Somali spatial patterns.

For those interested, the full text (currently the open-access version) can be downloaded officially from the Swedish academic archive here: Thesis Link

I’ve attached a few key pages below, including the abstract and some of the technical and visual elements of the project. I would love to hear thoughts from fellow architects, students or anyone interested in how to build non-generic architecture based on Somali needs and culture.

How do we best bridge the gap between academic research in the diaspora and actual, tangible construction on the ground back home?

This was my core challenge whilst writing this thesis, and my goal moving forward is to actively promote earth-based architecture in Somalia, inshallah!

Hey everyone, sorry for the brief silence while finishing up my master's thesis. The President of Somali Institute of Architects (SIA) reached out on LinkedIn to invite me to present my project live this Thursday for Somali architecture students from different universities in Xamar.

The session will focus mostly on my thesis, AFGOOYE CIVIC ASSEMBLY: Spatial Hierarchy & Post-Conflict Civic Architecture in Somalia. I'll be exploring how designing modern public spaces can help rebuild community life and restore civic structure in Afgooye. My architectural experience in the UK and Sweden will just serve as a bit of brief background context.

I co-built this sub for genuine Somali design discourse, so I would highly value your thoughts and critiques. Hope to see some of you there!

Event Details:

• Date: Thursday, 18 June 2026
• Time: 7:55 PM – 8:55 PM EAT (Check your local time zone)
• Platform: Google Meeting
• Link: https://meet.google.com/tki-isnv-cmw

Apologies for being inactive guys, I was working overtime on my MA thesis about Somalia so I needed to come through and defend it against these cadaans!

Big shoutout to ArchZakiaweiz for the amazing posts he has been doing lately!

We’ve seen several posts of abandoned buildings recently, the Commercial Bank of Somalia, the former National Assembly and the stadium area. But not all of them are in the same condition!

Take Mogadishu Stadium hotel for instance. It’s not fully destroyed or hopeless, yet he structure still reads clearly. The location is strong, part of a large public land with open space, stadium and even recreational areas like the pool.

What should happen here? What is the best play?

1. Restore it - Bring it back as a hotel, repair and upgrade what exists?
2. Adapt it - Keep the structure, but give it a new use, housing, public space, mixed-use
3. Replace it - Start over and build something new for today’s needs.

Bear in mind the context. Although it is Xamar, resources, climate and urban growth have their limitations.