The Embassy of the Czech Republic in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

CTU in Prague - Faculty of Architecture

Project idea

The Horn of Africa is in a rapid transition under geopolitical interests but still it struggles with poverty and challenges of the Third World and Addis Ababa is its front example. Building of the Czech Embassy should contribute to the course of searching for sustainability in architecture and urban design in context of the african metropolis and bring there a certain quality stretching beyond the embassy walls.

Project description

The idea of sustainability is present in the project in multiple stages of time. The starting point is a vast garden, that as a green field has its own quality also for the neighborhood. Building itself is then in-built into the garden as a solid permanent structure of a rational layout that fits any kind of functional requirements. Infill of the building is designed as an embassy that with its specific needs works as a self-sufficient secure fort that offers opportunity for local community which is also a traditional model of urban symbiosis among Addis Ababa.

The plot of land in its current condition is a barrier in the fast changing infrastructure of the city. It calls for a cut with a street in the southern part. That way the secure embassy complex and the public space for local community in a form of social housing (e.g. multiple blocks of “Sustainable Urban Dwelling Unit” according to current research of EiABC) are defined. On the other side the structure of embassy is subdivided into security zones according to requirements, where the garden plays a role of interface between those. Additional is a recreational zone for various sport activities that can be eventually open to the public or to the neighboring school.

Rather than import of raw materials and building machinery, it is important to work with local tradition of building and the new research that has been done in the past years in this field (e.g. BC Architects, Brussels). There are two local materials suitable for this project - stone and earth. Stone serves as a solid base on which the brick pillars are erected. The mass of brick walls and ceramic “czech vaults” keeps the inner microclimate stable and saves energy for both cooling and heating. The monolithic concrete roof with two corner shafts shelters and stabilizes the whole structure, but also drains precipitation to the basement filtration system. The earth extracted at building site can be used for construction of the perimeter fence and social housing as rammed earth structures. The imported element should be present in a form of lights and installations of czech glass-makers and artists.

Technical information

The idea and form of a courtyard enclosed by a cloister that connects individual rooms is a historical archetype that has proven its quality over time. Reusing this form in the current condition seems fitting not only for its structural strength but also for the room flexibility and functional fluidity. In the transforming environment of today’s Addis Ababa, it seems appropriate to build structure that characterizes locality and lasts more than one lifetime. The rational arrangement is then elevated with 8m tall pillars that underline the monumentality of the form and add necessary representativeness.

As an embassy the building is divided into two main parts - official with representative spaces and offices on the eastern side and residential with apartments of the embassy staff and the ambassador on western side. The partial subdivision is made out of perforated brick walls that, together with tilting upper slash of windows, enable cross ventilation through the inner rooms. The building separates the garden into residential, representative and private part for the ambassador. The inner courtyard then rather serves the official purpose and is at the same time the core of the building.

Energetic and supply self-dependency is ensured in multiple ways. The roof serves not only as a huge water collector but also as a platform for solar panel field. Both water and electric energy are stored and treated in the basement and afterwards distributed through the corner shafts to the building. The abundant water is pumped into outdoor reservoir for watering the garden that, again treated with plant filtration, serves also as swimming pool. Capacity of production of both clean water and electricity should be sufficient enough to supply also the social housing and if necessary even the whole neighborhood.

Co-authors

Barbora Červeňová, Václav Ulč, Jan Vagaday