Long walk to freedom: Immutably and powerfully bound up with the spirit of place, this modest building marks the beginning of a journey around a series of sites dedicated to the life of Nelson Mandela.

The task of making a museum dedicated to the great South African leader Nelson Mandela is not only concerned with conventional buildings and structures, but also forms part of a process that helps to empower and develop marginalized communities. United by a powerful sense of place, the museum is spread over three interrelated sites at Umtata, Qunu and Mvezo, all in the Eastern Cape. The village of Mvezo was Mandela's birthplace: he spent his childhood in Qunu (where he also intends to spend part of his retirement) and Umtata was the former capital of Transkei, one of the hated bantustans (black homelands) under the former apartheid regime. Through different buildings, sites and structures, the proiect tells the story of Mandela's life and struggle while addressing wider social issues.

In particular, it has created many new jobs, especially for women, in the form of short-term work in building construction and long-term employment in tourism.

At Umtata, the former Bhunga building, which was first used as the seat of colonial authority and later as the legislative assembly for the Transkei government, has been converted into a museum and archive. At Qunu, an exhibition, meeting space, youth and heritage centre are being developed to serve the local community. At Mvezo the preserved remains of Mandela's homestead mark the starting point of his life and the beginning of the visitors' journey around the various sites.

Mvezo lies some 30km by gravel track from Qunu, on a plateau above the Mbashe River. Although the village was forcibly removed by government decree in the 1960s, remnants of the Mandela family homestead still exist. These fragments have been enclosed and protected by a simple barn-like structure, open on three sides. The fourth side is screened by lightweight wattle wall that gently diffuses the harsh light. A corrugated steel roof supported on circular timber columns provides shade. Floating lightly in the landscape, the modest enclosure is conceived as an interpretation space, from which visitors can make a tour of the site. Other new structures such as a raised timber walkway and stone platform form vantage points for contemplating the grandeur of the surroundings.

Built entirely with local unskilled labour, the building makes use of local craft traditions such as wattle fences and masonry construction. It has also brought wider benefits -- water is now pumped from the river to a reservoir so that people have a communal water supply and place to do their washing. Before the creation of these amenities, villagers had to fetch water in canisters from the river. Despite (or perhaps because of) the lack of formal skill involved in its creation, the little building is very beautifully made, its sobriety and dignity entirely fitting to its context and subject matter. It is also a heartening affirmation of the power of architecture to change people's lives.