New City Project “Libreville II” Unveiled in Gabon,Architect Draws Inspiration from past Successes and Failures
Libreville,Gabon – Senegalese architect Pierre Goudiaby Atepa is leading the design of “Libreville II,” a planned new city in Gabon intended to serve as a “green and smart capital,” according to reports from Jeune Afrique. the project, symbolically launched with the involvement of Transitional president Brice Oligui Nguema, is structured around twelve core areas including a presidential palace, a ministerial city housing the National Assembly and Senate, a science and technology hub, and a free industrial zone.
A key feature of Libreville II is ”Savannah Kingdom,” a theme park envisioned as “the kingdom of Children” showcasing African myths, fauna, and cultures. Residential areas, dubbed “Iroko” or the “Light City,” will feature modern housing, villas, and a 22-story residential tower, all connected by a multimodal transport system called “Libreville Express” encompassing fast bus lines and a light rail line.
The $3.347 billion project is slated for completion by 2039, potentially coinciding with the end of a hypothetical second term for President Nguema. Atepa intends to finance construction through a strategy employed in a previous, ultimately unsuccessful, project in the Democratic Republic of Congo – increasing land value on the selected site and selling land to fund growth.
Atepa previously designed the Kitoko project in the DRC, which stalled in 2020 due to land speculation. As he explained to Jeune Afrique, “I had warned the Congolese authorities that it was necessary to secure the property of the 30,000 hectares on which the project had to be built.As they did not do (…) A whole bunch of businessmen have acquired land on the planned site, in a purely speculative logic.”
Despite this prior setback, concerns remain. Issa Diabaté, founder of the architectural firm Koffi & Diabaté in Abidjan, expressed reservations about the influence of political agendas on urban planning and the potential lack of thorough preparatory studies. The challenges are highlighted by the experiences of other African choice capitals, such as Abuja, Nigeria (which succeeded in replacing Lagos), and Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire (which remains largely a ”ghost capital” with most institutions remaining in Abidjan).
Atepa hopes Libreville II will represent “the new generation of African capitals: green, intelligent, inclusive.”
