VIII National Festival of Architecture ‘Minsk-2009’ has been opened in our capital on September 17. The event is organized by Belarusian Union of Architects with the support of International Union of Architects, International Association of Unions of Architects, Architectural Council of the Countries of Central and Eastern Europe, Interstate Fund for Humanitarian Collaboration of Countries – Members of SNG.

Architects from more than 40 countries will be participants of the Festival, president of OO ‘Belarusian Union of Architects’ Alexandr Korbut announced at the opening.

On Minsk international competition of young architects ‘Leonardo-2009’, which will take place as a part of the Festival, 117 architects from Spain, Greece, Finland, Slovenia, Poland, Russia and other countries, will participate. Alexandr Korbut said, that competition was supposed to attract attention to problems of young architects and help raise the level of architectural education in Belarus.

For the first time the competition is under patronage of International Union of Architects, Korbut underlined. More than 300 projects will participate.

Competition of architectural projects from countries members of SNG and competition of children`s drawing are also taking place as parts of the Festival.

Greetings to all the participants and guests of the Festival sent President Alexandr Lukashenko. He states, that Belarus has ‘gathered rich traditions of town planning which enables building of unique cultural, educational, medical, health preserving, sport objects; and large scale reconstruction and preservation of architectural monuments’. Lukashenko also underlined that National Festival of Architecture ‘is set to demonstrate huge creative potential and become a singular exhibit of this perspective profession, which will help develop productive collaboration in this area.’

Festival will be open until September 19 in exhibition pavilion ‘Belexpo’. Project institutes and architectural bureaus will also exhibit their work. In addition, personal expositions of architects, presentation of city sculptures and photographs will take place.

 and Residential complex in Mayakovskava Street.