Construction of a project to build a $10 billion IT hub, which is planned to house Africa’s tallest building, has been kick-started near Ghana’s capital Accra.
The project called Hope City is planned to have Africa's tallest building, at a height of 270 metres or 75 stories according to an investor in the project, local technology company RLG Communications.
RLG further says that two towers of 216 metres (60 floors) and 152 metres (40 floors) are to be built in Hope City as well.
The tallest building in Africa is currently the Carlton Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa. The Carlton Centre stands at 222.51 m according to global provider of building information Emporis.
Built on empty land, Hope City is also intended to employ 50,000 people and house 25,000 people, says RLG.
Ghana’s president, John Mahama, officially launched the project yesterday.
Ghana’s move to launch Hope City comes after Kenya unveiled plans in January to build its $14.5 billion Konza Technology City, which is about 60km outside Nairobi.
Konza Technology City, also referred to as ‘Silicon Savannah’, is said to take 20 years to complete and forms part of Kenya’s 2030 vision to boost job creation by adding 200,000 people to the country’s workforce.
President Mahama emphasised that Ghana’s private sector is intended to spur on the building of Hope City.
"Government has led growth since independence with all the major investments... The time has come for the private sector to take over," he said at the project's launch.
"We can see that already in several sectors, including ICT [information, communications and technology] and telecom."
Hope City is further planned to include an IT university, a residential area, a hospital, as well as social and sporting amenities, the BBC says.
(Image source: http://www.rlgghana.com)
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