Africa Hall is the permanent headquarters of the
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA or ECA; french: link=no, Commission économique pour l'Afrique, CEA) was established in 1958 by the United Nations Economic and Social Council to encourage economic cooperation among its ...
(UNECA) based in
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...
,
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
. The structure, built in the span of only 18 months, was completed in February 1961.
It covers an overall area of 75,000 m2, with a usable area of 13,800 m
2, consisting of 3,600 m
2 of conference halls, 5,500 m
2 of offices and 4,700 m
2 of general facilities.
[ Its main characteristic is represented by the “continuous spaces” of the internal layout.][ Ten years later, in 1971, work was commenced on a project funded by the United Nations to extend the structure, which was completed in 1975. It consists of a block of 800 new offices, a 6-storey building to house the huge library and other buildings for general facilities. This extension work added a further 130,000 m2.][
Along with the ]Addis Ababa City Hall
The Addis Ababa City Hall ( am, አዲስ አበባ ማዘጋጃ ቤት) is a governmental department that houses the offices of the Municipality of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
History
Along with Africa Hall, the UNECA headquarters, the Addis Ababa ...
, Africa Hall was one of the two projects designed to demonstrate, in the words of Emperor Haile Selassie
Haile Selassie I ( gez, ቀዳማዊ ኀይለ ሥላሴ, Qädamawi Häylä Səllasé, ; born Tafari Makonnen; 23 July 189227 August 1975) was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1930 to 1974. He rose to power as Regent Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia (' ...
, “that it is possible to construct grand buildings here too n Ethiopia by erecting a couple of high-profile structures. It is not their complexity or size that matter, but the maximum possible use of home-produced materials, in order to shake our wealthy middle class (which keeps its money under the mattress) from the inactivity that also binds it in the field of construction, and stimulate it to invest its assets also in building to make this ‘great village’ a city and a true great capital”.
It was here, in this conference center, that the African Union's predecessor, the Organization of African Unity
The Organisation of African Unity (OAU; french: Organisation de l'unité africaine, OUA) was an intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 32 signatory governments. One of the main heads for OAU's ...
(OAU) was founded on 25 May 1963. Also in this building is Afewerk Tekle
Afewerk Tekle (; 22 October 1932 – 10 April 2012) was an Ethiopian artist, particularly known for his paintings on African and Christian themes as well as his stained glass.
Early life and career
Born in Ankober, in Shewa Province, to e ...
's most famous work, ''Total Liberation of Africa'', a 150 m2 stained glass triptych. The work depicts images symbolizing African nations uniting to tackle poverty and disease. Also designed by Afework Tekle are the geometric design surrounding the central window, reminiscent of patterns of traditional ''shema
''Shema Yisrael'' (''Shema Israel'' or ''Sh'ma Yisrael''; he , שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Šəmaʿ Yīsrāʾēl'', "Hear, O Israel") is a Jewish prayer (known as the Shema) that serves as a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewis ...
'' clothing, which was added after the original design of the building to commemorate a construction worker that died during its construction.[
]
United Nations Conference Centre
The United Nations Conference Centre (UNCC) has two main conference halls offering a combined space of 2,000 m2 with a total capability of hosting close to 1300 participants. The main hall can host completely separate events or be linked electronically for a fully coordinated conference. In addition to the two main halls, the United Nations Conference Centre also has four additional conference rooms with a capacity for citing up to 115 people each. There are also ten caucus rooms used for break out sessions that can seat between 22 and 32 people: and two briefing rooms with a seating capacity of 44 and 64 people.
References
External links
{{Commons category, Africa Hall (Addis Ababa)
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa
Website of Arturo Mezzedimi
Buildings and structures in Addis Ababa
1961 establishments in Ethiopia
Government buildings completed in 1961