Zanzibar also known as Unguja a main island in Tanzania to construct the second tallest skyscraper in Sub-Sahara Africa, placing the second position over the current tallest building in South Africa, The Leonardo with pinnacle height of over seventy floors which covers a total area of 65,000 square metres with two underground floors and seventy- eight floors above the ground.
When completed, the seventy-storey building will be second tallest building behind Iconic Tower in Egypt which estimated completion is 2022 with the pinnacle height of 385m. The project will be home to a $1.3 billion commercial tower that could change the face of the semi-autonomous Indian Ocean archipelago.
A joint venture of Tanzania’s AICL Group and Edinburgh Crowland Management Ltd signed a contract with the New York and Dubai based architect xCassia that will see the latter come up with architectural designs for what will be the tallest building in Eastern, Central and Southern Africa.
Speaking during the signing in ceremony, Zanzibar’s Minister of State in the President’s Office (Economy and Investment), Mudrik Ramadhan Soraga, said the project was a big step towards building the isles’ blue economy.
“Its implementation supports the government’s effort in inviting more local and foreign investors to the isles,” he averred.
Crowland Management CEO, Mr. Emmanuel Umoh stated, the building project, to be known as Zanzibar Domino Commercial Tower, is expected to be an iconic feature that will promote tourism which will drive more investors, tourists and create job opportunities for the local people
“The Zanzibar Domino is a unique project which is exceptionally well suited to our investment philosophy of providing our investors with superior returns through exceptional schemes as well as strategic socio-economic projects that will leverage prosperity, people and the plant,” he said.
According to the founder and designer director of xCassia, Mr. Jean-Paul Cassia, the idea to construct the building on an artificial island was a ten-year long dream and became a reality after a site and investors were found.
“First sketched in Paris in 2019 after my late father, two sons and I played a round of dominos, I dreamed of building this project for over a decade.
Between its innate mathematical order and geometries found in nature, its pure lines and proportions that evoke growth, progress, and freedom, it had all the bearing of an icon anyone could remember and draw on paper napkin,” he said.
The building project is planned over three key sites, the Arrivals Plaza, Zanzibar Domino, and Island Resort.
Source: Nana Agyei Sikapa Ofosu – Manu
