Jury Citation
This building has received an Award because it shows an innovative approach to the design and placement of a large, symbolic form on one of the most important waterfronts in the world. From its inception through an international competition to its design and construction by many international companies, and in its current financial management, the project provides a model for other such projects in bringing together the international community and encouraging cooperation and commitment from society as a whole.
While the building is groundbreaking in architectural and technological terms, it also responds sensitively to a wide spectrum of issues, including politics, religion, culture and history. The bold ‘tilted disc’ forms an icon while delivering a highly formal and monumental building. The technical challenges of constructing such a large development close to the water’s edge and within an urban setting have been embraced and dealt with through the use of advanced technologies. The form also provides a clear organization and functions well for the rich variety of programmes it houses, while acting as a catalyst for improvements throughout the city. Finally, the project celebrates learning and brings knowledge to societies across all cultures, playing a crucial role in the progress of civilization.
Project data
Client Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Egypt (H.E. President Hosni
Mubarak, Chair, Council of Patrons; H.E. Mrs Suzanne
Mubarak, Chair, Board of Trustees; IsmaÔl Serageldin,
Director; Mohsen Zahran, Project Director, General
Organization for the Alexandria Library, 1995–2001).
Sponsors Government of Egypt; Ministry of Education, Egypt;
University of Alexandria, Egypt; United Nations Educational,
Scientific, and Cultural Organization, France.
Architects Sn¯hetta Hamza Consortium, Egypt: Craig Dykers,
Christoph Kapeller and Kjetil TrÊdal Thorsen, Principal
Architects, Sn¯hetta AS, Norway; Mohamed Sharkass,
Head of Architecture, Hamza Associates, Egypt.
Engineers Hamza Associates, Egypt: Mamdouh Hamza, Chairman and
geotechnical engineer; Mashhour Ghunaim and Ahmed
Rashed, structural engineers; Ibrahim Helal, electrical
engineer; Ali Omar, mechanical engineer; Mohsen Abdou,
plumbing and fire-fighting engineer; Tarek Yassine, site
engineer.
Consultants Jorunn Sannes, Norway, fine arts for stone wall; Schumann
Smith, UK, management cost and specifications;
Lichtdesign, Germany, custom lighting design; Multiconsult,
Norway, acoustics; Warrington Fire Research, UK, fire and
life safety; Stewart Helms, UK, security.
Contractors Radio Trevi, Italy; Arab Contractors, Egypt; Balfour Beatty,
UK.
Competition September 1989
Commission February 1994
Design May 1994–February 1996
Construction May 1995–July 2001
Inauguration October 2002
Site Area 45,000 m2
Built area 85,405 m2
Cost US$ 218,000,000
Primary School, Gando, Burkina Faso
Client: The community of Gando Village,Burkina Faso
Architect: DiÈbÈdo Francis KÈrÈ, Burkina Faso
Completion: October 2001
Description
This school is the result of one man’s mission to improve conditions in his village. Not only did he design the school and raise the funds to build it; he also secured government support to train people in building with local materials, and drew on the strong tradition of community solidarity to engage all of the villagers in the construction of this school for their children.
Gando, with a population of 3,000, lies on the southern plains of Burkina Faso, some 200 kilometres from Ouagadougou, the capital. DiÈbÈdo Francis KÈrÈ, the first person from Gando to study abroad, was convinced that education was the cornerstone of his people’s advancement. As an architecture student in Berlin, he took upon himself the cause of ensuring that his village would not be deprived of a school, and with a group of friends in Germany, KÈrÈ set up a fund-raising association, Schulbausteine f¸r Gando (Bricks for the Gando School). The idea met with a positive response and, having secured finance through
the association, KÈrÈ also obtained the support of LOCOMAT (a government agency in Burkina Faso) to train brickmakers in the technique of working with compressed stabilized earth. Construction of the school began in October 2000, carried out largely by the village’s men, women and children. After the school was completed in July 2001, construction of buildings for resident teachers began along similar principles.
To achieve sustainability, the project was based on the principles of designing for climatic comfort with low-cost construction, making the most of local materials and the potential of the local community, and adapting technology from the industrialized world in a simple way. It was also conceived as an exemplar that would raise awareness in the local community of the merits of traditional materials.
Climatic considerations largely determined the building’s form and materials. Three classrooms are arranged in a linear fashion and separated by covered outdoor areas that can be used for teaching and play. The structure comprises traditional load-bearing walls made from stabilized and compressed earth blocks. Concrete beams run across the width of the ceiling, and steel bars lying across these support a ceiling also of compressed earth blocks. Climatic comfort is also ensured by the overhanging roof, which shades the faÁades, by the raising of the corrugated metal roof on a steel truss, allowing cooling air to flow freely between the roof and the ceiling, and through the use of earth blocks for the walls, which absorb heat, moderating room temperature.
The roof form was dictated by practical considerations: it was not possible to transport large elements to the site from afar, nor economically viable to use lifting machinery such as cranes. Instead, the architect devised a process whereby common construction steel bars were used to create lightweight trusses, with corrugated metal sheeting laid on top to form the roof. All that was necessary was to teach people how to use a handsaw and a small welding machine.
All the people involved in the project management were native to the village, and the skills learned here will be applied to further initiatives in the village and elsewhere. The way the community organized itself has set an example for two neighbouring villages, which subsequently built their own schools as a cooperative effort. The local authorities have also recognized the project’s worth: not only have they provided and paid for the teaching staff, but they have also endeavoured to employ the young people trained there in the town’s public projects, using the same techniques.
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