Abstract
Burundi is one of the world's poorest nations, which is also reflected in its relative lack of cardiac facilities, particularly those catering to young children and adults. The authors discuss current efforts to build “The Burundi Heart Centre” to help address this challenge. In particular, they highlight how the project can act as a case study for a sustainable architecture that involves local people and uses locally available materials in a contemporary and innovative way.
Highlights
BURUNDI COUNTRY PROFILE Small, poor, densely populated and completely landlocked, Burundi lies in east central Africa bordering Rwanda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Figure 1)
The country is situated on a high plateau with the altitude ranging from 2,532 feet (772 meters) at Lake Tanganyika to 8,760 feet (2,670 meters) at the highest point, Mount Heha
Since independence Burundi has suffered from a long history of political unrest and armed ethnic conflict, marked by two major events: The brutal massacre of an estimated 150,000 Hutus by the Tutsi-dominated army in 1972, and the 1993 mass killings of Tutsis by Hutu militia
Summary
BURUNDI COUNTRY PROFILE Small, poor, densely populated and completely landlocked, Burundi lies in east central Africa bordering Rwanda, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Figure 1). DESIGN PRINCIPLES The ambition for the pediatric heart centre is two-fold: firstly, it is to provide state of the art cardiac facilities to a country in high need for decent cardiac services. At the same time it is the intention to use inspirational architecture as a tool to improve lives, highlighting the fundamental values of healing and preserving the life of children and young adults in an environment that mitigates the sensation of stress and worry.
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