ISHO names Women’s Day Design Challenge winners

ISHO, in collaboration with the Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha (RAJUK), has announced the winners of the ISHO Women’s Day 2026 Design Challenge Awards programme.

Held under the theme “Designing Safer Cities for Women”, Afifa Jahin Roza of North South University won the first prize. 

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Md Mahamodul Hasan Palash of Daffodil International University and Husna Zahan Tonny, Md Mostakim Molla and Tanzima Akter Anka of Khulna University Team placed second and third, respectively.

Rayana Hossain, founder and managing director of ISHO, presented the awards at a ceremony held in Dhaka on Saturday, according to a press release.

Commenting on the initiative, she said, “We wanted to create something that goes beyond simply talking about women’s safety. As a design-led brand, we believe design has the power to influence how people experience and interact with their cities.”

“This challenge was created to give young architects a platform to identify real problems, challenge existing systems and develop ideas that can potentially make our cities safer and more inclusive for women.”

“Most importantly, we wanted these ideas to have a life beyond the competition, to be explored, developed and, where possible, brought closer to reality,” she added.

The initiative invited university students across Bangladesh to develop practical and innovative design solutions addressing women’s safety in urban environments, with a focus on moving ideas from concept to potential real-world application.

A four-member judging panel led by Tayna Karim, partner architect at NR Khan & Associates, evaluated the candidates and selected the winners.

The panel also included Mehrin Chowdhury, editor of Star Lifestyle at The Daily Star; Md Ashraful Islam, chief town planner of RAJUK; and Rayana Hossain.

Built around “Rights. Justice. Action.”, the challenge encouraged participants to address women’s safety across streets, public spaces, transportation, educational institutions, workplaces and residential environments.

As part of the ISHO-RAJUK collaboration, the winning project will be further developed with urban-planning support from the RAJUK chief town planner, alongside the ISHO MD and team. The collaboration aims to explore its potential for further development, prototyping and real-world application.