It is important to reconfigure the way of thinking about urban slums. Instead of being considered a major urban problem in third world countries, one needs to realise their essential role in the continual functioning and growth of the nation’s economy. This thesis, through research and design aims at qualifying slum environments and architectural interventions within said slums. The research dealt with the idea of qualifying informal urban densification in order to formulate a base for meaningful slum upgrade processes. The design process undertakes systemic design thinking in order to propose a system of upgrade which will generate an informal economy whilst providing skill transfer and education to the community, thereby increasing the capacity of the people.