The Interior Designers Association of Nigeria (IDAN) has called on business leaders, developers and policymakers to treat interior design as a critical investment in workplace productivity, employee wellbeing and organisational performance, rather than as a finishing touch to building projects.

The association said the design of offices and other indoor spaces could influence how effectively people work, stressing that decisions on lighting, ventilation, acoustics, safety and space planning should be considered from the beginning of a project.

IDAN President, Jacqueline Aki, gave the charge at a press conference, ahead of its National Interior Design Summit (NIDS), under the theme, ‘Interiors as Infrastructure’.

Citing research by the World Green Building Council, Aki indicated that better indoor air quality can improve office productivity by between eight and 11 per cent.

She also cited research by the University of Salford in the United Kingdom, which linked classroom design to a difference of up to 16 per cent in pupils’ progress over a year.

The findings, she stressed, reinforced IDAN’s position that interior design extends beyond aesthetics to the planning and organisation of spaces to support the people who use them.

Beyond the corporate environment, Aki said the association also extends the argument to public infrastructure, with Project NEXUS, which will focus on the Sickle Cell Centre in Idi-Araba, Lagos, identified as a practical example of translating the summit’s theme into design action.

The association said the summit would provide a platform for policy discussions on public-building design, alongside panel sessions and interventions intended to demonstrate the practical application of professional interior design.

The summit, scheduled for October 24, is expected to be held at the Wole Soyinka Cultural Centre, Lagos, within the framework of Design Week Lagos.