Arab Architects Awards Festival Concludes with a Ceremony Honoring Winning Projects

Egypt, represented by the Egyptian Engineers Syndicate and the Architecture Division, hosted the Arab Architects Awards Festival 2025, which took place over three days from 24 to 26 November. The festival concluded on Wednesday evening with an awards ceremony announcing the winning projects, where Dr. Joseph Hourani, President of the Arab Architects Association, revealed the results and presented the awards to the winners.

The first-place award in the Private Residential Projects category went to Silent Walls from Jordan, while Terraces House from Lebanon secured second place, followed by Lebanon’s Sea House in third place.

In the Large-Scale Residential Projects category, Egypt’s Tell Al-Aqarib won first place, Tunisia’s Hills ranked second, and Lebanon’s The Twelve Residences in Riyadh came in third.

In the Public Buildings category, The Lebanese Academy from Lebanon won first place, while Egypt’s Handicrafts Center placed second and Morocco’s Multimedia Library came third. Meanwhile, Morocco’s La Marine Hotel claimed first place in the Tourism and Entertainment Projects category, followed by Egypt’s Hotel and Educational Training Center in second place and Helwan Kobrityage in third.

Egypt also won the first-place award in the Work and Commercial Centers category with the Qanawat Company Headquarters project, while Iraq ranked second with the Embassy of Indonesia in Abu Dhabi project, and Lebanon came third with the Obeid Center. In the Rehabilitation Projects category, Lebanon’s Beirut Heritage Initiative earned first place, Egypt’s Al-Nawawi Mosque Complex ranked second, and Egypt’s Maghagha Post Center took third place.

In terms of overall results, Egypt topped the list with seven awards, followed by Lebanon with six, Morocco with two, while Jordan, Tunisia, and Iraq secured one award each. The festival also honored the distinguished jury panel, which included leading Arab architects, academics, and experts, chaired by Prof. Dr. Ahmed Reda Abdeen (Egypt), with members Dr. Adnan Abbas Adas (Saudi Arabia), Dr. Mohammad Talal Oqeili (Syria), Dr. Maroun Dakache (Lebanon), Dr. Ali Mahmoud Abu Ghoneima (Jordan), Architect Jabbar Hamza Lateef (Iraq), Dr. Karima Anoush (Algeria), and Dr. Hanan Al-Jabriya (Oman).

The event also honored some of Egypt’s architectural pioneers, including the late Dr. Yasser Saqr, Prof. Dr. Tarek Wafiq, Prof. Dr. Saleh Laamy, Prof. Dr. Hakim Al-Afeefi, Prof. Dr. Mostafa Abdelhafiz Al-Ahwal, Prof. Dr. Shafaq El-Wakeel, Prof. Dr. Ahmed Mostafa Anan, Prof. Dr. Mohsen Zahran, Prof. Dr. Abdelmohsen Barada, Prof. Dr. Mohamed Mohamed El-Sayed Serag, Prof. Dr. Adel Yassin Moharram, Prof. Dr. Mohamed Ibrahim Gomaa, master architect Essam Safi El-Din, consultant architect Seifallah Abu El-Naga, and Prof. Dr. Mahmoud Gheith.

In his remarks at the festival’s closing ceremony, Prof. Dr. Ahmed Reda Abdeen, Chair of the Jury, highlighted the extensive effort undertaken by the jury in reviewing and evaluating 183 projects across six categories.

He explained that the evaluation was based on precise criteria, including the design concept, coherence between the concept and its context, architectural value and aesthetics, impact on the architectural community, functional performance, and environmental, social, and economic sustainability.

Abdeen noted that discussions among the jury members resulted in several proposed initiatives to support the mission of the Arab Architects Association and the broader architectural field. These included establishing an annual competition for graduation projects in Arab universities, introducing a recurring competition for innovative architectural ideas addressing key challenges in the built environment, expanding the publication and digital showcasing of shortlisted projects, and strengthening collaboration between the Arab Architects Association and international professional organizations, such as the International Union of Architects (UIA).

For his part, Eng. Tarek El-Nabrawy, President of the Engineers Syndicate, expressed his pride in the strong participation of architects from across the Arab world and praised the high-level organization and outstanding quality of the festival. He emphasized the significant role Arab architects are expected to play in the upcoming reconstruction of Gaza, extending his thanks to all supporters of the festival and to the distinguished jury panel.

Dr. Ahmed El-Zayat, Head of the Architecture Division, extended his appreciation to architects from Egypt and the Arab world for their participation throughout the three-day festival, which hosted a total of 1,800 participants. He also acknowledged the contributions of former division chairpersons and current and past board members.

Over the three-day event, the festival featured not only project exhibitions but also a series of discussions and lectures. Among them was a keynote address by Prof. Dr. Abdelkhaleq Ibrahim Al-Qadi, Assistant Minister of Housing for Technical Affairs, titled “Visions and Directions of Egyptian Urbanism”, in which he discussed national strategies for new cities such as the New Administrative Capital and the Northwestern Coast, as well as the redevelopment of informal settlements, Downtown Cairo, and the Government District.

The festival also hosted panel discussions including “Heritage and Artificial Intelligence in Architecture” chaired by Prof. Dr. Ahmed Hosni Radwan, “Arab Architecture Between Identity and Innovation” chaired by Dr. Joseph Hourani, and “Future Cities in the Arab World: Toward Sustainable Urban Development” chaired by Dr. Mohamed Hesham Saudi, with participation from representatives of Talaat Moustafa Group, Misr Italia Properties, the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, the Arab Engineers Union, and the Faculty of Fine Arts.

The festival concluded with a ceremony honoring its success partners, including Talaat Moustafa Group Holding, Misr Italia Properties, EgyptAir Holding Company, ICC Consultancy, the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, GTNI, YOUVERSE, Foam Protek and Digital Twin Innovation, Floki Software, and Al-Massa Hotel in Nasr City.