DUSHANBE, September 5, Asia-Plus — On Tuesday September 4, at a ceremony held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, His Highness the Aga Khan announced the nine recipients of the 2007 Aga Khan Award for Architecture, press release issued by the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) Tajikistan said.

Founded in 1977, the Award marks its 30th anniversary this year, and the completion of the 10th cycle of the program.  The Aga Khan Award for Architecture has a triennial prize fund of US$ 500,000, making it the world’s largest architectural award. The rigor of its nomination and selection process has also made it, in the eyes of many observers, the world’s most important architectural prize. Awarded projects have ranged from the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur to a primary school in Burkina Faso.

“The essence of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture is to examine, analyze, understand, and try to influence the dynamic of physical change in Islamic societies,” His Highness the Aga Khan has remarked. “Our attempt and aspiration is to try to have the humility, but also the competence, to understand what is happening and to seek to influence it so that future generations can live in a better environment.”

During the current cycle of the Award, 343 projects were presented for consideration, and 27 were reviewed on site by international experts. An independent Master Jury selected nine Award recipients that are notable for having attained the highest standards of architectural excellence while reflecting the values of their specific environments.

The nine projects selected by the 2007 Award Master Jury are:  Samir Kassir Square, Beirut, Lebanon; Rehabilitation of the City of Shibam, Yemen; Central Market, Koudougou, Burkina Faso; University of Technology Petronas, Bandar Seri Iskandar, Malaysia; Restoration of the Amiriya Complex, Rada, Yemen; Moulmein Rise Residential Tower, Singapore; Royal Netherlands Embassy, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Rehabilitation of the Walled City, Nicosia, Cyprus; and School in Rudrapur, Dinajpur, Bangladesh.

The AKDN Tajikistan said that on behalf of the Tajikistan, the AKAA Ceremony had been attended by Mirzohisain Sultanov, First Deputy Director of the Agency for Construction and Architecture of Tajikistan

The Aga Khan Award for Architecture identifies and encourages building concepts that successfully address the needs and aspirations of Muslim societies. The Award recognizes examples of architectural excellence in all the places where Muslims live, in the fields of contemporary design, social housing, community improvement and development, historic preservation, reuse and area conservation, as well as landscape design and improvement of the environment.

The Award is governed by a Steering Committee chaired by His Highness the Aga Khan.  The Awards are selected by an independent Master Jury appointed by the Steering Committee for each three-year Award cycle.