Iconic Tower

The Iconic Tower is a skyscraper in Egypt's New Administrative Capital, a new city east of Cairo. It is 394 metres (1,293 feet) tall and has 77 floors, mostly offices. It is the tallest building in Africa, and also the tallest structure on the continent.

It is the centrepiece of the Central Business District, where 20 towers are planned or being built. Excavation began in May 2018, the tower reached its full height in August 2021, and it was finished in 2024. When it was completed in 2024 it passed the tower of the Great Mosque of Algiers, in Algeria, as Africa's tallest building.

An obelisk for the new capital

The designers took their idea from an ancient Egyptian obelisk, the tall stone pillar of the pharaohs. The glass outside is meant to remind people of the Shuti crown of the god Amun, a crown with two tall feathers. The architect of record was the company Dar Al-Handasah Shair and Partners. It is a mixed-use building, though most of its floors are offices.

A big building job

The main builder was China State Construction Engineering Corporation, which employed more than 5,000 Egyptian workers on the project. Concrete work on the foundations began in February 2019, and all structural concrete was finished in July 2021. When it was completed in 2024, it passed the Great Mosque of Algiers minaret in Algeria as Africa's tallest building. It is part of the new capital's plan led by Egypt's Ministry of Housing.

On the globe

The model shows the obelisk-like tower with two banded halves ending in rounded tips.