Kenyan firms among winners at Africa property awards
Solar panels during the launch of Africa's largest solar carport system at the Garden City Mall on September 15, 2015. The solar carport is powerful enough to power 550 urban homes in Nairobi annually. PHOTO| DIANA NGILA
What you need to know:
- Set on 32 acres, Garden City in Nairobi is East Africa’s first integrated residential, retail and office development and was recognised for having the largest solar panelled carport in Africa on the mall’s rooftop parking area.
- Karibu Homes was recognised for its proficiency in the mass market affordable housing segment. It has more than 1,000 homes under development.
- “The winners have set an exceptionally high standard for real estate developments across sub-Saharan Africa and continue to shape the African built environment landscape,” API Events Managing Director Kfir Rusin, said.
Kenyan firms were among the companies that clinched top positions in the property industry at the Africa Property Investment (API) Summit Expo and Awards 2017 in South Africa last the weekend. The awards recognised innovation and outstanding achievement across the property industry.
Garden City, which was developed by Actis, won Kenya the medal for best green building in sub-Saharan Africa while that for the best housing development went to Karibu Homes.
Set on 32 acres, Garden City in Nairobi is East Africa’s first integrated residential, retail and office development and was recognised for having the largest solar panelled carport in Africa on the mall’s rooftop parking area.
The developer’s vision was for the commercial solar project to cut carbon emissions by around 745 tonnes a year, which translates to approximately 18,625 tonnes over its entire lifespan. The 858 kWp solar carport system comprises 3,300 solar panels and will generate 1,256 MWh a year. The electricity generated is used to power mall facilities such as lights and escalators.
During the day, the system generates solar electricity, allowing it to use much less energy from the grid. The hybrid technology enables the carport to run in tandem with a diesel generator so that when the sun goes down, the mall can easily switch over to grid energy, or the backup generator, should the grid go down.
Karibu Homes was recognised for its proficiency in the mass market affordable housing segment. It has more than 1,000 homes under development.
The judges said the development has had a significant systemic impact on the affordable housing ecosystem in general, with both public and private institutions actively seeking to learn something from it.
The projects were judged on a wide range of criteria including location, innovation, technical and architectural quality.
The other winners were Best Retail Development: Kumasi City Mall, Ghana; Best Commercial High-Rise Development: Accra Financial Centre, Ghana: Best Mixed-Use Development: Kigali Heights, Rwanda; Best Hotel Development: Strand Hotel, Namibia: and Best Architectural Design: Torres Rani Towers in Mozambique.
“The winners have set an exceptionally high standard for real estate developments across sub-Saharan Africa and continue to shape the African built environment landscape,” API Events Managing Director Kfir Rusin, said.
The projects were judged on a wide range of criteria including location, infrastructure and transport access, integration into the environment, originality of the concept, technical and architectural quality, services offered, sensitivity to the local community, innovation, sustainability, corporate staff involvement, response to market demands, financial performance, occupancy, and the impact of the project on economic convergence.
