Doctoral Thesis / Dissertation from the year 2011 in the subject Art - Architecture / History of Construction, grade: Bestanden, Technical University of Darmstadt, language: English, abstract: This research has the aim to study Mozambican housing considering its evolution and present day characteristics, making critical analyses of the current situation, in order to indicate possible guidelines for actions in the future. The study objective is the so called Open House, its transformations and applicability in today's urban context of the informal settlements, with the hypotheses that it can be preserved as a sustainable housing concept. This project produces original knowledge, since investigations of the housing situation so far have not provided detailed architectural analysis of the Open House in informal settlements in Mozambique. The method is based on case studies with an abductive approach. The steps are in short; 1. an inventory based on document analyses, 2. field studies with observations and interviews of key actors, 3. SWOTanalyses, 4. recommendations and proposals for preserving and developing the sustainable characteristics of the Open House concept.