KLABU sports clubhouse in M’bera refugee camp: Supporting communities through the joy of sports

Installed within refugee camps, this series of modular, scalable and multifunctional hubs offers communities with a welcoming and inclusive space to gather and access sports equipment, Wi-Fi and TV broadcasts. More than just a social space, it aims to support refugees in rebuilding their lives through the joy of sports.

The design was developed by MVRDV through a partnership that began in 2022 with Amsterdam-based social enterprise KLABU (meaning “club” in Swahili). Its iteration in the M’bera refugee camp in Mauritania complements a network of schools, markets and a bank. Since its arrival in mid-July 2024, the M’bera clubhouse has already counted over 4,210 participants, with over a third being girls.¹

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A sports club in a shipping container

The basis of the structure is a modified ISO-standard dry shipping container, chosen for its durability, security and ease of transport. This allows for both the physical clubhouse structure and the necessary sports equipment to be delivered altogether, forming a ‘flat-packed’ sports clubhouse. The design also addresses the need for adaptability to different circumstances, helping protect against the many climates found in refugee camps around the world.

The shipping container is clad in an eye-catching orange exterior, laser-cut with the KLABU logo. The orange of the exterior is contrasted by a sky-blue interior with compact, modular and adaptive interior installations. These offer ample storage space for the clubhouse materials, which can be pre-loaded into the container prior to shipping and readily accessed by clubhouse managers once mounted. Interior fixtures have been chosen for durability and ease of transit through customs.

The design enables solar panels to be mounted to the roof to deliver renewable energy. Recognising the need to support activities beyond sports (including education), multiple electricity and charging points, as well as wireless internet capacity, are included for mobile and portable devices’ connectivity.

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Collaboratively designed

The M’bera clubhouse is the third iteration of the design, following installations in Ter Apel, Netherlands and the Waraotuma a Tuaranoko shelter in Boa Vista, Brazil. This design opens along its 20-foot side in addition to doors at the end of the container, delivering greater visibility by incorporating a substantial window open to the public, a large television screen and a canopy. The canopy provides shade during the day, extending the use of the clubhouse to sports such as table tennis and other social activities.

The clubhouse’s latest version is soon to be installed at the Azraq refugee camp in Jordan, which is home to approximately 41,000 Syrian refugees. Each clubhouse has been designed in collaboration with and following feedback from KLABU, TCHAI (the practice responsible for fabrication and fitout), and clubhouse managers in the camps.

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PROJECT DATA

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¹ https://klabu.org/clubhouses/m-bera