The Department of Taxes and Attorney General's Chambers Building (sometimes shortened to Attorney General's Chambers Building) is currently the tallest building in Botswana[4] and one of the most expensive buildings built in Africa.[5] The building, located in the Government Enclave on Nelson Mandela Drive in Gaborone, is home to the Botswana Department of Taxes and the Attorney General's Chambers.
| Department of Taxes and Attorney General's Chambers Building | |
|---|---|
  Location within Botswana | |
| Alternative names | Attorney General's Chambers Building |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Office building |
| Architectural style | Futurism |
| Location | Nelson Mandela Drive, Gaborone, Botswana |
| Coordinates | 24°39′18″S 25°54′31″E / 24.654998°S 25.908561°E |
| Current tenants | Botswana Department of Taxes, Attorney General's Chambers |
| Construction started | 1999 |
| Completed | 2007[a] |
| Cost | 42 million United States dollars |
| Owner | Botswana government |
| Height | 176.77 ft (53.88 m) |
| Technical details | |
| Structural system | Curtain wall, made of concrete |
| Floor count | 15 |
| Floor area | 38,000 square metres (410,000 sq ft) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architecture firm | Pramod Patel Architects |
| Other designers | The Fitzwilliam Partnership Botswana |
| References | |
| [1][2][3] | |
History
editMiscommunication and financial mismanagement caused construction of the building to grossly exceed both the deadline and budget. The part of the building originally for the Attorney General's Chambers was assigned to three other departments (i.e. the Ministry of Commerce and Industry; the Ministry of Works, Transport and Communications; and the Department of Architecture and Building Services) before being assigned to the Attorney General once again. Lesego Motsumi, Minister of Works and Transport, reported that "the project had a time delay of 544 days which resulted in an additional cost of P11,734,464.27" (US$1.9 million in July 2007).[6]
Architecture
editThe building's design has been criticised for its glass windows, which can cause high energy costs in a hot climate.[7]
Notes
edit- ^ Sources give differing completion dates. The Fitzwilliam (2012) page says the building was completed in March 2002 while the Sunday Standard (2007) article shows that the building was still under construction in 2007.
Citations
edit- ^ Emporis1.
- ^ Denbow & Thebe 2006, p. 99.
- ^ Fitzwilliam 2012.
- ^ SkyscraperPage.com.
- ^ Emporis2.
- ^ Sunday Standard 2007.
- ^ Boidus 2011.
References
edit- "Attorneys General Chambers Building". The Fitzwilliam Partnership Botswana. 2012. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
- Denbow, James Raymond; Thebe, Phenyo C. (2006). Culture And Customs of Botswana. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 9780313331787.
- "Department of Taxes and Attorney General's Chambers Building". Emporis. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - "Gaborone". SkyscraperPage.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
- "Greening Our Energy Guzzling Buildings for the 21st Century". Boidus. 21 June 2011. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
- "The most expensive buildings in Africa". Emporis. Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - "Poor planning bleeds government of millions of Pula". Sunday Standard. 29 July 2007. Archived from the original on 8 April 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2012.