Movie: in this exclusive Dezeen movie, Burkinabe architect Diébédo Francis Kéré explains how he is rebuilding his country's National Assembly to be "more than just a simple parliament building".
In 2014, the Burkina Faso parliament building was set ablaze during the country's revolution, putting an end to 31 years of dictatorial rule. Kéré is now leading the scheme to build a new National Assembly on the site in the capital of Ouagadougou.
Talking to Dezeen at the Serpentine Gallery ? where he has just completed this year's pavilion ? Kéré explained the ideas behind his giant ziggurat structure.

"I was lucky to be called to think of how to design a [new parliament building] that responds to Burkina Faso and the needs of the people," Kéré told Dezeen. "I wanted to create this public space with everything," Kéré added. "We have a garden around it, we have the pyramid which is elevated, we have a cornfield on top. It is more than just a simple parliament building."
The stepped structure was designed to be inhabited by the public. At six storeys high, it will offer an elevated view of the city, which has a very flat topography.

"People can go on top of it at any time, during the day and during the night," said Kéré. "Symbolically it is transparent, it is open."
The roof hosts several green terraces that will be accessible to the public and are intended to serve as an educational tool to encour...