GAETAN SIEW

Gaetan Siew is a globally recognised visionary in the fields of architecture and urbanism. With an unwavering commitment to architectural excellence, he played a foundational role in establishing the Mauritian Association of Architects and rose through the ranks of the African Union of Architects before becoming the first Vice President and subsequently the President of the International Union of Architects (UIA)—the global organisation representing over 1.5 million architects across 124 countries.

As President of the UIA, Gaetan contributed actively to shaping international architectural policy, promoting sustainable urban development, cultural heritage preservation, and inclusive design across global forums and multilateral institutions. His leadership helped elevate the voice of architects in global policymaking platforms, bridging practice and diplomacy.

Over the course of his career, he has contributed to more than 1,600 projects across five continents, through his architectural practice and numerous international collaborations. His work spans diverse typologies and geographies, grounded in a deep understanding of culture, context, and community.

A true world citizen, Gaetan has travelled to over 115 countries and explored more than 500 cities in his pursuit of solutions to the complex challenges facing contemporary societies. In a notable journey in partnership with the Aga Khan Foundation, he spent three months backpacking along the historic Silk Road, gaining profound insights into architecture, culture, and the lived experience of people across diverse regions.

Through his Global Creative Leadership Initiative, he champions social equity and poverty alleviation through urban innovation, with a focus on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and the African continent. He convenes global conferences and advises governments, municipalities, and communities on scalable, people-centric design strategies. His commitment to knowledge sharing has led him to serve as a visiting professor of Architecture and Urbanism in France and China, and he is a prolific contributor to newspapers, journals, and international forums.

Gaetan has served as a resource expert for the European Commission, ICOMOS, and institutions such as Shanghai and Beijing Universities, and sits on various global industry think tanks. He was a Board Member of the UK Government’s ‘Future Cities’ programme, and has held strategic roles in Mauritius, including Chairperson of the Construction Industry Development Board and the Smart Cities Steering Committee, where he helped drive forward transformative urban projects valued at over £4 billion. In these roles, he was instrumental in shaping intergovernmental agreements for the development of emerging cities across Africa.

He has been honoured with numerous accolades, including selection among the ‘100 Architects of the Year’ in 2014 by the Korean Institute of Architects, five presidential or honorary medals from architectural institutions, three honorary memberships and fellowships, and governmental decorations from both the Republic of Mauritius and the French Republic.

Gaetan Siew currently serves as the Ambassador of Mauritius to the People’s Republic of China and is based in Pekin.

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What I like about Gaetan is that he does not keep himself within the defined boundary of his profession. He has a global humanitarian view. He has a vision of a world where he is not the centre of his world. He wants a world with human values, not driven by selfish motives. In all the years I have known him, I have never seen him flinch from his defined path, or the obstacles that have inevitably arisen alnog the way. I admire him for his dedication and commitment.

MUHAMMAD YUNUSNOBEL PEACE PRIZE
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'Humanism' might be the word that best describes the great work of Gaetan Siew, as an architect, a team leader and a visionary. Being involved in future studies, I was myself very sensitive to Gaetan's determination to promote Smart Cities that would remain human centered rather than mostly focused on performance and technology. His concern for a sustainable environment and his devotion to preparing a positive future are other very remarkable qualities of his.

VIRGINIE RAISSONPRESIDENT, LEPAC
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When South Africa emerged from isolation in the early 90’s to join the global network of architects, Gaetan Siew led the charge. At that time he was Secretary General of the Africa Union of Architects (AUA) and also a member of Council of the International Union of Architects (UIA) so South Africa had an immediate champion. He later moved up to chair the UIA and became a trustee of the AUA thereby retaining his feet firmly for architecture in Africa as well as worldwide.

RODNEY HARBER PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF KWA ZULU NATAL
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Mr Gaetan has been successful in accessing architecture related problems. he is a very charismatic person, a man of genius. When characterising Mr. Gaetan, one could say he is a person of global thinking, capable of bringing together people and providing them with information of global professional importance.

JURIS MONVIDS SKALBERGS PAST PRESIDENT, BALTIC ARCHITECTS UNION ASSOCIATION
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As a UIA Past President, Mr. Gaetan Siew’s main priorities was a comprehensive programme of structural transformation aimed at revitalising the Union and making the professional world body more effective. He was a constant advocate for fairer mobility of the 1 500 000 architects within the 130 member countries establishing international practice norms engaging with WTO, setting up international qualifications recognition in collaboration with UNESCO and the creation of a global Continuous Professional Development system.

WEIMIN ZHUANG DEAN OF ARCHITECTURE, TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY
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During his term as the Presidency of the World body of Architects (UIA), he worked largely in connecting architects of the developing nations and advocated strongly for their empowerment through innovative solutions for sustainable communities by infusing African architecture with cultural values which was strongly supported and promoted through his Vision and Strategy committees he chaired at both world body and for the African Continent.

TOKUNBO OMISORE PAST PRESIDENT, AFRICAN UNION OF ARCHITECTS
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Grace a ce réseau qu'il a bien voulu active chaque fois que nécessaire, suite au tsunami en 2004 pour la mise en place d'actions d'assistance aux populations sinistrées en Indonésie et au Sri Lanka ou encore suite au séisme du Pakistan en 2007, il a permis la mobilisation des entités nationales d'architectes des pays touches et favorise ainsi la reconnaissance de notre action et son développment.

PATRICK COULOMBEL CO-FOUNDER, ARCHITECTES DE L'URGENCE
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Gaetan Siew is a discrete and truly inspiring figure, admired by his peers and lcoal community. He dedicates his time selflessly for the betterment of the urban fabric. We need more architects like Gaetan; devoted to contribute to building a more sustainable world. He deserves this recognition for selflessly dedicating his career to the betterment of the world, providing possibilities for Governments, Councils & Communities to achieve resilience and urban coherence.

ZAHEER ALLAMCHAPTER CHAIR, INTERNATIONAL NETWORK FOR TRADITIONAL BUILDING, ARCHITECTURE & URBANISM
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In international forums or on collaborative initiatives, Gaetan has impressed us with his natural ease to connect Western thinking to Eastern sensibilities, and vice versa, whatever the project or the audience. I also believe that his approach to architecture and planning work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision, and commitment, which has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built environment through the art of architecture.

MARTA C. FAJARDO FORMER PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS