A Monument in the Sands: Africa’s Tallest Building Rises Amidst Vast Emptiness
Under the expansive skies of Northern Egypt, a marvel of modern architecture is steadily taking shape. The Iconic Tower, soon to stand as Africa’s tallest edifice, pierces the horizon in a landscape yet to teem with life. Nestled beneath this architectural giant lies Egypt’s "New Administrative Capital," a city designed with the ambition to ultimately accommodate 6.5 million inhabitants. For now, it remains largely uninhabited, a silent sentinel in a terrain that echoes the desolation of the desert it supersedes.
This ambitious urban project is but a fragment of a larger trend sweeping across the globe—a fervent wave of city-building unseen since the post-war era. Governments and private firms alike are in the throes of planning and constructing new settlements at an unprecedented rate. Over the last decade, a staggering 91 cities have been announced, with 15 of these emerging just within the past year. Egypt stands at the forefront of this phenomenon, not only with its new administrative capital but also with five other cities currently rising from the sands, alongside a plethora of future urban plans.
The reverberations of similar developments resonate worldwide. India, on its part, is weighing the establishment of eight new urban centers. Meanwhile, near Baghdad, Iraq has commenced construction on the first of five proposed settlements, marking a fresh chapter in its storied history.
Thus, as the Iconic Tower ascends, so does a vision of a more interconnected and urbanized world, an era defined by the relentless pursuit of progress and innovation.
— Source quoted from the Economist