Burj Zanzibar Will Be Africa’s First Wooden High-Rise

Zanzibar is constructing Africa’s first wooden high-rise. It’s a 28-storey apartment tower, billed as a ‘vertical green village’ with balconies, roof gardens and swimming pools. The 96-metre block is called the Burj Zanzibar. ‘Burj’ means tower in Arabic. It’s designed in the style of a beehive and uses locally sourced wood. Burj Zanzibar will use cross-laminated timber, a layered wood product that is resistant to fire. Timber is the oldest building material on Earth, but it’s currently seeing a resurgence thanks to its green credentials. One cubic metre of wood absorbs around a tonne of CO2, while cement is responsible for at least 8% of CO2 emissions. Watch to learn more about Burj Zanzibar and to use timber in construction.