During a recent regional conference held in Nairobi, my fears were confirmed that Kenyan architects were gradually losing jobs to fellow African competitors, especially South Africans. This is not a surprise as local architects seem to have resigned themselves to designing bad buildings. The days of good architecture in Nairobi and other towns are well behind us.
This trend started in the late 1980s and continues to this day. The days when well-designed towers dotted the skyline of our CBD are long gone, and have been replaced by sleek glass-faceted towers. Buildings should house the people while architecture should inspire and nourish their souls. What has come up in recent times in Nairobi is nothing near good architecture; it is an architectural calamity.
Often, the clients, in their naivety, ask for sleek towers like those seen in other big cities around the world, and many local designers embark on these designs without tempering them to suit our physical environment or energy needs.
Shower towers are coming up at a fast rate. In fact, the well-designed buildings to the east of Tom Mboya street and along Biashara Street are steadily being demolished and replaced by tall structures with glassy facades. They are often uncomfortable to work in.
The last good towers were built in the CBD in the 1970s. That is when structures like the Hilton Hotel or ICEA building came up. It is also the era when many government-owned buildings were commissioned. These were, among others, Nyayo House, Jogoo House and even the National Bank House on Harambee Avenue.
These are largely beautiful buildings, and many are very efficient in energy consumption. Nation Centre, built much more recently, is also good in many ways. However, as much as architecture is a subjective discipline, many architects and lay people alike concur that many glass towers around the CBD are awful.
This is due to two reasons. One is that people, especially those who grew up in rural areas, hardly identify with these buildings. Though it may be argued that architecture is not static and our Africanness is being modified through interaction, such arguments are specious. My focus is to address a second reason, which has gathered a bigger consensus: That these glass blocks are unbefitting to our country due to their unbearable heat gain and high consumption of energy.
Africa is opening up fast as the next growth frontier in the world. This has been hastened by the sound investment climate. In sub-Sahara Africa, many multinational companies are setting up office and operations in Kenya due to its geographical location, stability and human resources.
This should translate into many infrastructure projects getting commissioned, including buildings to house a regional workforce. This is fast opening opportunities for local architects, but recently, we have seen them lose these big, lucrative projects to professionals from other countries, especially South Africa.
In today’s world, where every corporation is faced with cut-throat competition and pressure to project their image, no company is taking chances — they all want to ensure their buildings are rated the best, most durable and most energy-efficient.
To do this, corporations are inviting competition from the best architects to design their buildings.
This is where local practices are losing out in trying to address local housing concerns with cut-and-paste jobs from Western Europe or North America that are not sustainable in the tropical heat of sub-Saharan Africa.
While we have refused to heed this global direction, upcoming projects designed by South African architects address these environmental issues and the corporations are warming up to them. One such case where the locals could not match up to the South Africans is the magnificent Coca Cola headquarters in Upper Hill. As I write this, I know of two other big projects that have recently been commissioned to foreign firms.
This is unfortunate for Kenyans, keeping in mind that a large percentage of professionals steering these practices in South Africa are Kenyans by birth and education.
Source: Daily Nation
The University of Nairobi used to produce awesome architects. what happened?
A syndrome sweeping across the continent not just Kenya. The bright side is the emergence of young designers who understand the importance of vernacular architecture. These young ones are also fascinated by the sleek western style, however, much more critical. In my opinion, the problem in the design community of Africa is the lack of examplary practitioners. That is, architects that are championing the ideals of regional architecture in theory and in practice. It is relatively easy to reference guys like Norman Foster, Richard Rogers and a plethora of other european architects who have designed beautiful and eco-friendly buildings around the world. In Africa, I can think of Joe Addo of Ghana, Francis Kere of Burkina Faso and who else? Ultimately, the way forward is through mass education. We as professionals must do a better job in educating clients and society about the ills of imported designs. I challenge you Mr. African Designer/Architect to do THE research and present your ideas to your client in the form of ILLUSTRATIVE and INTERACTIVE diagrams. Explain the short and long term benefits of adapting home based-design ideals. Present the alternative of using borrowed and alien ideas. And finally, show them what you are made of…what you love to do. Design a building that has, for example, the glass he or she desires; but in the appropriate facade and with the appropriate shading devices etc etc. We must teach our people to love that which is authentically African and conducive to our way of life. One project at a time.
My thinking is that this article needs to be thoroughly refined before it gains any credibility.First of all what is a bad building? and what are the basis to classify a building as bad? again what makes the buildings highlighted above to be classified as good?…the article should include collected and analysed data to substantiate any of the above claims? otherwise I will term it as a weak understanding of the prevailing circumstances in the local built environment.
History tells me that architecture is an adaptation of human life,it is a reflection of peoples lifestyle and behaviours at a particular period through the course of time,that is why we have architectural styles like the Baroque,romanesque,renaissance,classical,modern,high tech etc…these are reflections of how people lived at a particular period in history.
Glass facaded buildings in Kenya is not a mistake,but it is a reflection of the society we have and the demands of our clients which is a great factor.Some arguments that glass faced buildings consume a lot of energy and have uncomfortable heat gains need proper research,we should ascertain whether the opposite is true…You can have a fully glazed facade as long as the orientation with regard to sun path is ok,you can even recess the glazing to avoid direct glare.Creativity in design is what matters.
The advent of advanced information techniques like the internet should not be ignored,the world has become a global village and borrowing of ideas whether architectural from other places will happen however we dont like it,what was called regional architecture is now global.There is no longer architecture for Kenya or East Africa,its now global architecture, we may think that great architecture will only come when we confine ourselves to the limitations of our local climate,which may be true but very subjective, ignoring all the other factors which dictates the outcome of a building will only leave us to lament while giving no solution.
We should know that green architecture is nothing new in this country,my grandfather used solar energy to dry his maize and millet,my grandmother recycled organic waste like potato peels as manure to her kitchen garden which she irrigated using grey water from the kitchen.They built their houses using mud and thatch which created wonderful internal thermal environments.They left openings btwn roof and wall for natural cross ventilation.The hype about sustainable,green design in Kenya is just becos the west has now hyped it.
As a local Architect,I will start by respecting myself and my colleagues.I will be cautious while addressing them because I know the facts they have to deal with.I will also address ourselves and not themselves because I know I am one of them.The more we undermine ourselves and think we are bogus,the more we will look stupid.
Please,Let us focus more on giving solutions rather than blubbering and lamentations,lets not make ourselves appear better while we are all swimming in the miasma of confusion.
Julius, you have hit the nail right on the head.
Beauty or otherwise of a building or anything else is relative and very subjective. There is no universal scale and as such, you will find as much literature criticizing famous names like Zaha Hadid as that which praises them.
In addition, the author has made a biased statement portraying Kenyan architects negatively, as being poor designers. This assertion supported by the author’s dislike of glass buildings which he calls ‘shower towers’. I totally disagree with the author who has betrayed his inclination towards environmental design, which is justified, but which ignores modern approaches to achieving sustainable design in buildings.
The fact that Kenyan architects are running the show in countries like Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, Botswana and some even in South Africa has been clearly ignored just because a few, say two or three, South African firms have managed to get commissions in Kenya. Many of these foreigners always come up with ignorant and unworkable designs which suit their environments and more often than not, its the local architects they work with who rework the designs to suit local conditions.
Finally, i believe the industry is currently vibrant and the available architects are too busy. We can do with some help from abroad.
hallo sir,the young upcoming innovative thinkers oath to be given chances with the help of the professionals. Like me sir am an undergraduate but very innovative,i am trying to get a chance with a professional to show my design passion capacity.if you can help sir.
JULIUS…An interesting response…i have laughed all the way to the end. The first time i read this article was in the nation newspaper and i was not convinced that Patrick’s arguments were elaborate.
My response is, you cannot argue over a matter which you don’t seem to present the FACTS for or against. One shot of the view park towers, the building we have all heard, seen and talked about since our undergraduate days should not be enough. Actually, i think we should credit the designer for raising a debate on architectural practice in Kenya.
Whereas it is true that we may not be entirely considering the regionalism in our designs today(albeit Julius argues we are now global)… Patrick has done a dis-service to the heading of his article.”Why local architects are losing jobs to their SA counterparts”…there is not a single reason i have seen there, in my opinion, it is a compilation of rumours about the local practice…ooops..sorry!
Patrick…Redo this article with a different heading!
let us be given chances to show up our ability in the field.believe you me kenyans we are the best architects in africa.only if we can nature our young upcoming talented innovators. WE CAN DO IT EVEN BETTER.
This problem is not confined to Nairobi. A quick trip to Mombasa and you’ll be heart broken. There are many new buildings that do not identify with the culture, native architecture or the environment. Many moons ago in my previous profession in the tour industry, I struck a conversation with a group of visiting African Americans from the USA. Many had saved for months to make this once in a lifetime trip to their “motherland”. Many were disappointed and noted ” we left New york to come and experience Africa, our hotel could pass for any other hotel in a major US city” . Why cant we have modern architecture that represents African culture? Serena beach resort accomplished this feat quite seamlessly and effortlessly.
The writer has some valid points but as someone already stated, they are misrepresented. Obviously, his heading is misleading and a case of a few South Africans doing projects in Kenya doesn’t mean Kenyan architects are losing jobs to their foreign counterparts.
While it is important for Kenyan architecture to present a regional image, we must agree that regional architecture cuts across many factors and is not only limited to glass and external view. The truth however is we lack real icons in African Architecture especially in East Africa….where are the FLWs, the Norman Fosters and even radically the Zaha Aideeds.
Fellow architects, what we need to produce are more functional and sustainable monuments, we need more KICCs. I long for the day I will see an image in an international magazine and anyone can clearly point it out as a Kenyan monument like you would do the Eiffel Tower, Burj Al Arab, Sydney Opera House
A friend consulted me on a building design he’d done and though it may not be representative, it was appalling as the total work done represented about 10 % of the content implied by the service schedules of CAP 525. These imply case, situational, site and feasibility studies to come up with an answer to the clients needs.
Instead, the client wants stalls similar in size to but greater in quantity than those in the next building. Because the work is easy, the architect settles for a third of due fees and proceeds to pack stalls into the allowable floor area without a thought of what might happen in the government or COMESA decides to ban Dubai trinkets and Chinese rejects – a very welcome move.
Suffice it to say that a (3×6) meter stall will garner about sh 1.8 million in goodwill and what happens to the business after that is not the landlords, or anybody’s concern. As to whether it is right to promote such trade where children cry because the toy broke after 2 hours is another matter.
Here, I am talking about the architect and leadership, which was abdicated sometime in the 90’s during Moi’s regime which must be restored to its rightful place, by doing things the way they are meant to be done, to benefit society, the user, the developer, the profession and the self in that order.
Right now, I am not sure if anyone benefits and in what order.
And then come those awful client/ architect trips to China for tiles, ironmongery and other things that could be manufactured locally to make a dent in our 60 % unemployment rate and stem recruitment of local idle youth into Al Shabaab who only come back to lob grenades into those same stalls.
Strathmore University actually had a seminar that included Ministry of Housing officials, appropriated technology and building materials department and slum-upgrading, no less, euphemistically entitled “What we can learn from the Chinese” or words to that effect. I attended only to find that it was about how best to procure building materials from China.
After listening to the proceedings on how to procure the right Chinese guide, lower import duty and other things unrelated to architecture, my contribution was that my learning from the Chinese, during a short stint at the Moi International Sports Complex, was that the project leader planned, designed and drew all the 500 or so A-1 drawings and was right on site with everybody else as construction advanced.
That is what I have tried to do ever since.
The socio-environmental and economic fit, say, in Nyamakima- Naiorbi is very different from Phra Khanong-Bangkok, Aurora-Denver, Kivumbini-Nakuru or Falkensee-Berlin, the degree to which can only be determined by the studies earlier mentioned.
What is certain, however, is that if architectural design was practiced in the way implied here, there would be no glass towers in Nairobi at all. And it is not about aesthetics per se, but nation building on solid foundations.
While we are at it, a read of The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand, Deveil On The Cross by Ngugi wa Thiong’o and The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho might give some useful pointers.
Currently, Kenya needs 10-15,000 architects compared to the 1,700 currently. Competition issues would hardly arise if we looked earnestly at the 220,000 housing unit Kenyan deficit annually.
When ordinary housing hovers around sh 35,000 per square meter of floor area, there is cause for concern because, perhaps only 3 % of the population can afford that, hence the seeming competition because all the 1700 architects focus on that piece of the pie
This is why, out of the 250,000 housing units needed in Kenya annually, only 30,000 or 12 % are delivered.
And Kenya’s is one of the better scenarios in Africa.
I think if architects in Kenya, Azania and the entire continent seriously addressed this question with homegrown solutions, the architecture curriculum would change to at least 9 years, more schools for building professions would be urgently needed and, before they come on-stream, the workload would have to be carefully allocated to avoid burn-out.
made a similarly structured foray into eco-technology and social enterprise could make a dent into the 82
Such a situation is possible, as you will see, while enjoying this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5UlPtYo-VE&feature=youtu.be