AKDN | Singapore

Beyond Buildings

In September 2026 the Aga Khan Award for Architecture and Ismaili CIVIC Southeast Asia held Beyond Buildings at the Asian Civilisations Museum. Farrokh Derakhshani, who directs the Award, was joined by Wong Mun Summ of WOHA, Sarah Ichioka of Desire Lines, Hossein Rezai of Ramboll and Gareth Doherty of the National University of Singapore.

Aga Khan Award for Architecture

Moulmein Rise Residential Building, a 28-storey tower by WOHA Architects for UOL Development, won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in the 2005 to 2007 cycle. Completed in 2003, it cools itself by borrowing from vernacular building rather than by relying on mechanical systems. The monsoon window, a horizontal opening that lets in the breeze but keeps out the rain, is built into the facade alongside careful orientation, cross-ventilation, overhangs and shading.

In July 2012 the Award brought its seminar programme to Singapore. Planners, academics and architects met for two days at the Urban Redevelopment Centre to discuss how mobility, energy, water and waste are folded into planning practice, what role universities play in a city, and how art, culture and sport shape planning strategy. Speakers included Cheong Koon Hean, then chief executive of the Housing and Development Board, Heng Chye Kiang of the National University of Singapore, and Mohsen Mostafavi, then dean of the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

A 2024 symposium at the Asian Civilisations Museum, showcasing collaboration between the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, WOHA Architects, Ismaili CIVIC, and local ecological innovators, demonstrated how cities can harmonise with nature while preserving their unique cultural identities. Dr Nirmal Kishnani, moderating, highlighted Singapore’s unique position as a living laboratory for integrating culture, community and ecology into urban planning.

Culture and exhibitions

Treasures of the Aga Khan Museum: Architecture in Islamic Arts ran at the Asian Civilisations Museum from July to October 2012, showing paintings and objects from the Aga Khan Museum collection. Download the catalogue.

Partnership beyond Singapore

Singapore contributed the dental team at the AKDN-funded Bamyan Provincial Hospital in central Afghanistan.