Joina City … and the man behind

Written by Gift Phiri

Friday, 16 July 2010 14:38

HARARE - In October 1997, when businessman Shingai Mutasa was talking excitedly of a plan to build Zmbabwe's tallest skyscraper on the impoverished west side of the capital city, many just laughed off the both the TA Holdings boss. (Pictured: Shingai Mutasa – The man behind it all)
Harare’s latest and tallest office and retail block built by a Zimbabwean seemed pure folly. Zimbabwe's economy was entering a period of recession.
Yet Mutasa, an economist by profession, proposed teaming up with local planners to build a state of the art shopping and office complex in a nation where the currency did not trade freely, investment by foreign banks was tightly restricted, and stock markets were struggling.
Worst of all: The tower would be situated along Jason Moyo, arguably the poorest part of downtown Harare.

Mother
Dozens of other foreign investors had rebuffed Mutasa's efforts to lure them to build Joina City, named after his mother. Only his mother embraced the vision then. (Pictured: Harare’s Joina City)
Despite skepticism, Mutasa steadfastly declared his enthusiasm for the undertaking and 13 years later the fruits of his belief and labour are there for all to see – and admire.
Mutasa three months ago opened Joina City, a 24-storey colossus that soars above Harare's now crowded skyline. Unfortunately, it has failed to claim ownership of Harare's tallest building. The highest building remains the central bank, the towering state reserve located along Samora Machel Avenue.
Joina City has 17 000 square of retail space, 12 000 square metres of office space and parking for 600 cars. It comprises supermarkets, clothing outlets, hair salons, bookshops, homecare facilities, office blocks, banking facilities and underground parking bays.
Its powered by 1 100KVA generator, which ensures uninterruptible power supply. Its prepared for all emergencies, with water reserve tanks holding 24000 litres, just in case water are cut as often happen in Harare these days.
Construction of the multi-storey complex began in 1998 at an estimated cost of US$27 million but suffered serious bottlenecks due to rapid increases in the cost of building materials some which had to be imported at a time the local currency was on perennial slide against major currency.

Saudi Prince
Determined to see the project through, Mutasa said he sought help from Saudi Arabian Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Alsaud, who is believed to have pumped US$1 billion into the project as hyperinflation ran riot in Zimbabwe.
Said Mutasa of the technical partnership: "We did not have the money that is why we had to seek partners and the Saudi Arabian prince to provide the required capital because as circumstances became harder, we started to sacrifice our own resources."
Other investors who helped out include Communications and Allied Industry Pension Fund, Zimnat Investments (Private) Limited, Local Authorities Pension Fund, Dubury Investments (Private) Limited, Kingdom Bank, Joina Holdings Limited and the National Railways of Zimbabwe Pension Fund.?
Mutasa says the project was driven by his desire to prove that indigenous Zimbabweans can embark on such mammoth projects with success. In a way, he suggests he wants the building to become part of his legacy. ?

Never about money
"We wanted our brothers and sisters walking past, along Jason Moyo or any other place to look back and say: 'This is what our own people can do'," Mutasa said. "We were never willing to sell, however, difficult it was going to be. The thing that drove us was never about money. We were driven mainly by the desire to show that we could also do it." ?
Property analysts say he'll get his price. However Mutasa's skyscraper has its critics. A senior Zimbabwean architect who spoke to The Zimbabwean on Sunday on condition of anonymity decried Joina City's gargantuan scale as "a regurgitation of everything wrong with 20th-century urban planning."
Detractors have dismissed Joina City as "a giant portable vacuum cleaner." ?But Mutasa says such indictments misunderstand the nature of Joina City's mandate.
To satisfy Zimbabwe's planners, the building had to be resolutely modern - and make a statement equal to the soaring ambitions of Harare's urban planners.
Christopher Mugabe, an urban design principal hails Mutasa's Joina City as "an extraordinary success" whose reputation is sure to endure.
And Mutasa concurs.?"Not many people in the future will be able to replicate this," Mutasa said, proudly. ?At the very least, the Joina City secures Mutasa's reputation as Zimbabwe's boldest developer.
In a country starved of real estate and urban megaprojects - Mutasa has set out to show that big can also be beautiful and to enhance the quality of urban life in his home country. He has succeeded.

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