The World Architecture Festival Awards concluded on Friday night with the accolade of World Building of the Year bestowed on the Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre in South Africa, designed by Peter Rich Architects of Johannesburg.

Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre, which is situated at the confluence of the Limpopo and Shashe rivers, is designed to house artifacts from the region’s prehistory. The project is underpinned by a strong social programme, using the skills and labour of local people and involving them in the design and construction process.

Judges praised the project for its roughness and hand-crafted intelligence. They also admired the way in which it handled issues of sustainability and its relationship to the landscape. Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre was selected from a total of 15 finalists, by a ‘super-jury’ chaired by Raphael Viñoly of Rafael Viñoly Architects PC, which included Kengo Kuma, Farshid Moussavi, Suha Ozkan and Matthias Sauerbruch. 

Collecting the World Building of the Year Award, Peter Rich said: “I will continue my quest to be of service to the less privileged, because they deserve it.” Commenting that his next project would be in Ethiopia, Rich added: “I’m going to continue the good fight and take it to the world.”

Although the festival in Barcelona is over, there's still more to digest, so keep coming back for M.E.'s coverage of the category winners and also more nominees which we've picked out for a special mention...