This article delves into the construction of Middle-Class Mass Housing (MCMH) complexes in Angola and Mozambique during the last phase of the Portuguese colonial occupation by exploring the role of housing cooperatives. As the public apparatus failed to respond to the increasing housing demands, the colonial state encouraged the private market to fill the gap with housing cooperatives emerging as meaningful players, despite the Portuguese dictatorial regime’s attempts to repress cooperativism. This paper explores the modernisation and urbanisation strategies that housing cooperatives introduced in late colonial urban production by unpacking the cooperatives “Alegria do Trabalho” in Luanda and “COOP” in Maputo. It discusses how they were financed, who their target audience was and their impact on the development of middle-class neighbourhoods. It also investigates how the colonial rhetoric, the economic context, and the legislative framework influenced their activities. The analysis is based on different sources such as architectural records, oral histories, newspapers and magazines. It reveals that housing cooperatives significantly shaped the urban landscape and colonial housing experiences after the end of the Second World War and the political upheaval that led to the beginning of the anti-colonial struggle in 1961, promoting a new lifestyle and urban identity for the emergent middle class.

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Cooperative Housing,Maputo,Luanda

• Arts (arts, history of arts, performing arts, music) - Humanities
• Other Humanities - Humanities

This publication is an output of the following project(s):

• Beyond Modern Housing Heritage of Portuguese Influence, an Optimistic Architecture for Living. Comparative and Multi-Situated Perspectives on Modern Dwellings and Surroundings