The Greek Campus in Downtown Cairo is about to become Egypt’s design hotspot. On Thursday, October 2, 2025, the first-ever AYDA Awards Egypt ceremony will celebrate the country’s brightest young architects and interior designers, offering a glimpse into the future of how we’ll live, work, and play.
What’s AYDA?
The Asia Young Designer Awards (AYDA) is one of the biggest design competitions across Asia and the Middle East. Founded by Nippon Paint, it brings together students, industry mentors, and top universities from more than 20 countries to push the boundaries of design innovation. Egypt made its debut in 2025, and the timing couldn’t be better.
Organized locally by Kairos Culture & Design Collective (Kairos CDC), the competition connects students with working professionals, helping them level up their portfolios and gain real-world feedback. This year’s theme, “Converge: Crafting Cultural Legacies,” challenged participants to blend Egypt’s heritage with future-forward design, and the results were bold, thoughtful, and surprising.
One standout project reimagined Cairo’s back alleys as modular, sustainable community hubs inspired by Islamic geometry, a perfect example of how students turned legacy into living design.
The Jury Lineup Is Actually Impressive
This wasn’t just a formality. The juries were stacked with names shaping Egypt’s current design landscape:
Architecture Jury:
May al-Ibrashy (Megawra), Ahmed El Seragy (BUE), Raef Fahmi, Amr Abd el Kawi (AUC), and Silvia Covarino (GUC)
Interior Design Jury:
Hisham Ghorab (Style Design), Karim Mekhtigan (Alchemy Design Studio), plus professors from GUC and Coventry University Cairo.
Their collective insights guided the competition through mentorship and final evaluations — making sure students actually learned, not just submitted work.
The Road to the Finals
Getting this far wasn’t easy. Students:
- Submitted their work during the national open call
- Took part in mentorship programs with Egypt’s top architects and designers
- Presented to a professional jury in early September
Finalists have already been selected. Now, we wait to see who will take home the top prize — and represent Egypt at the AYDA international finals in 2026, with a shot at an all-expenses-paid program at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design.
The Big Night: October 2nd
Held in the Greek Campus courtyard, the awards night promises:
- Announcement of winners and runner-ups for both architecture and interior design
- Recognition of mentors and jurors
- A live showcase of the winning projects
- Red carpet vibes, live entertainment, dinner, and plenty of Instagrammable moments
If you’re in Egypt’s design world — or just curious about where it’s headed — this is the place to be.
Why AYDA Feels Different
Egypt has always had design talent. But AYDA brings visibility, mentorship, and international opportunity — something that’s been missing for many emerging creatives.
Unlike many competitions, AYDA emphasizes learning and growth, not just polished presentations. It invests in talent before it “makes it,” creating a new path for design students to step onto the global stage.
October 2nd Can’t Come Fast Enough
The jury has spoken. The projects are in. And a new generation of Egyptian designers is about to take its first major bow.
Whoever wins on October 2nd won’t just take home a trophy — they’ll carry Egypt’s design story into an international spotlight. And if there’s one thing Egyptians know how to do, it’s build things that last.
