Cape Town - Burkina Faso-born architect Diebedo Francis Kere has become the first African to be awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize, architecture’s most prestigious honour.
According to the Khaleej Times, Kere was honoured for “pioneering” designs that are “sustainable to the earth and its inhabitants — in lands of extreme scarcity.”
Kere is the first African to win the honour in its more than 40-year history.
Kere, a dual citizen of Burkina Faso and Germany, said he was the "happiest man on this planet" to become the 51st recipient of the illustrious prize since it was first awarded in 1979, according to AFP.
He is renowned for building schools, health facilities, housing, civic buildings and public spaces across Africa, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Togo, Kenya, Mozambique, Togo and Sudan, according to reports.
“He is equally an architect and servant, improving upon the lives and experiences of countless citizens in a region of the world that is, at times, forgotten,” said Pritzker.
Kere won plaudits for his 2001 project for a primary school in Gando village, in Burkina Faso, where he was born.
Unlike traditional school buildings, which used concrete, Kere’s innovative design combined local clay fortified with cement to form bricks that helped retain cooler air inside.
A wide raised tin roof protects the building from rains while helping the air circulate, meaning natural ventilation without any need for air conditioning.
The success of the project saw the creation of an extension, a library and teachers’ housing in later years.
In Burkina Faso, Kere’s accolade was hailed as a reminder that the country should be known internationally for more than conflict and violence.
IOL