The Migrant Accommodation Project

Hundreds of thousands of low-waged migrant workers live in dormitories scattered around the island. These housing infrastructures are vital to the production and development of the city yet improvements to them have been sluggish. The outbreak of the COVID-19 virus led to heightened scrutiny over dormitory conditions with promises of improvements to be implemented. However, residents of dormitories rarely have their voices heard.

In response to the outbreak, the Here With You–Migrants Helpline, Soap Cycling Singapore, and Migrant Workers Singapore embarked on a research study to better understand migrant workers’ living conditions, the emotional and mental effects of Singapore’s movement restrictions on migrants, and to provide solutions for dormitory improvement. We employed participatory research methodology that first entailed sense-making, consulting with migrants about the challenges they faced in dormitories, and thereafter, collaborating with migrant community members for solution-finding that resulted in the use of Lego in creating improvement models. We partnered with an interior designer to translate workers’ ideas into design concepts that highlight their real-world application potential. The outcome is a 5-stage process with 2 design concept iterations.