Circularity in Your City

The Pyramid building, designed by Italian architect Rinaldo Olivieri and erected between 1968 and 1973, stands as a striking example of brutalist architecture in the Plateau commune of Abidjan. Its raw concrete and aluminum slats were thoughtfully engineered to optimize ventilation and natural light, incorporating avant-garde bioclimatic principles of its time. Fifty years post-construction, it remains an iconic figure in the urban landscape, symbolizing a bridge between the past and present. Nestled among white colonial buildings and ultramodern structures like the Caistab building, The Pyramid exemplifies President Félix Houphouët-Boigny's vision of Abidjan as a showcase for a prosperous Africa. Despite the ravages of time, the structure has withstood well and continues to inspire, becoming a subject of architectural theses and representing sustainability in urban innovation.

By Jean Morel N'DRI, Ivory Coast