Africa Hall, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

The historic Africa Hall is one of Addis Ababa’s landmarks. Inaugurated in 1961 by H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie, Africa Hall has been host to numerous meetings, and African Heads of State’s decisions, among which the adoption of the Charter of the Organization of African Unity (OAU).

The refurbishment restored the building to its original condition while incorporating measures to improve accessibility in keeping with the UN’s agenda to improve accessibility in the developing world.

Philip Chun conducted a site inspection of Africa Hall to establish existing conditions relating to accessibility. We worked with the architects to ensure accessibility is realised without compromising the existing building fabric or detracting from the strong architectural style.

We extensively researched the UN requirements for accessibility in developing countries to provide a basis for our assessments. International accessibility trends were considered to produce the best outcome for all users of the building in the context of international best practice for accessibility.