Seven groundbreaking architectural projects spanning from China to Egypt have been selected as winners of the prestigious 2025 Aga Khan Award for Architecture, with the studios set to share the $1 million ($739,000) prize. The winners were chosen from a shortlist of 19 projects announced in June, representing innovative design solutions that address community needs across diverse cultural contexts.
Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum received recognition for her Khudi Bari buildings, lightweight and transportable structures made from bamboo and steel designed to address mass displacement caused by flooding in Bangladesh. The jury praised the project as "profoundly optimistic," noting how it "reframes the role that architecture can and should play in times of difficult global realities." These adaptable buildings have been constructed in various locations throughout the country, providing resilient housing solutions for displaced communities.
In China, the West Wusutu Village Community Centre in Hohhot, designed by Inner Mongolian Grand Architecture Design, won for its innovative use of reclaimed bricks and its service to the multi-ethnic community in Inner Mongolia's capital. The jury emphasized how "the dynamics of this project significantly enhance social interaction, cultural experience, and environmental resilience," highlighting the building's role in addressing cultural needs of diverse local populations.
Egypt's contribution came through the Revitalisation of Historic Esna by Takween Integrated Community Development, which the jury commended for its "highly participative approach towards urban heritage conservation." The project involved a two-phase approach: first restoring and adapting historic buildings using traditional techniques, then developing small and micro businesses alongside tourism services and cultural branding initiatives.
Iran secured two awards this year, demonstrating the country's architectural innovation. On Hormuz Island, ZAV Architects won for the Majara Residence and Community Redevelopment, a vibrant complex of domes designed as a tourist retreat that mimics the island's ochre-rich soil. The jury praised the project's "deep sensitivity to context," describing how it "exemplifies how architecture can become a formidable force of optimism and rigorous resolve to shift the social, cultural, and material pendulum."
The second Iranian winner was KA Architecture Studio's Jahad Metro Plaza in Tehran, which transformed a formerly dilapidated station using local handmade bricks. The jury noted the project's "subtle strength, attention to heritage and craft, and its aim to revive pedestrian space and social interaction," emphasizing how it "exemplifies the role of architecture in shaping public spaces as living dialogues between history, people and ideas."
In Pakistan, DB Studios designed the multi-story Vision Pakistan building in Islamabad for a charity focused on empowering disadvantaged young people. The project, created by architect Mohammad Saifullah Siddiqui and educator Rushda Tariq Qureshi, drew inspiration from both Pakistani and Arab crafts. The jury praised how they "transformed a plot of land close to public transport and invented a building that would not only contain a new type of education, but be full of light, spatially interesting, economically efficient, and highly distinct."
The final winner, Palestinian studio AAU Anastas, was recognized for its Wonder Cabinet space in Bethlehem, which houses non-profit exhibition and production spaces designed as a hub for craft, design, innovation and learning. The jury concluded that "by imagining both the cultural institution and the physical structure that hosts it, the architects have created a building that transcends its immediate political context, providing a model for an architecture of connection that is rooted in contemporary expressions of national identity and asserts the importance of cultural production as a means of resistance."
The triennial Aga Khan Award, established in 1977 and headed by Muslim spiritual leader Aga Khan, aims to "identify and encourage building concepts that successfully address the needs and aspirations of communities in which Muslims have a significant presence." The prize-giving ceremony will take place at the Toktogul Satylganov Kyrgyz National Philharmonic in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, on September 15.
