DUBLIN HAS LOST out in its bid to be named the World Design Capital for 2014.

The capital was beaten by Cape Town in South Africa, which took the accolade at an announcement by the International Design Alliance congress in Taiwan.

Dublin had been one of the three shortlisted cities to take the gong for 2014, with Bilbao in Spain being the third entrant.

Cape Town will now be only the fourth city to claim the title, which is awarded every every two years, and the first from Africa.

Cape Town’s mayor Patricia de Lille said the honour was particularly meaningful for her city because it would also come exactly twenty years after South Africa became a democracy.

“2014, then, is the moment when the past and the future will come together for Cape Town, in contemplation and in action,” she said.

The judging panel paid tribute to Dublin’s unsuccessful bid, complementing the “high calibre” of its submissions.

Helsinki will hold the title in 2012. Seoul in South Korea held the accolade in 2010, while Torino in Italy was the first city to claim it in 2008.

Dublin’s bid for the status, entitled ‘Pivot Dublin’, was launched in March and had the backing of the city’s four local authorities.

Its submission had been presented under four themes: ‘Connecting Cities’, ‘Making Cities Lighter’, ‘Making Cities Flow’ and ‘Making Cities Smile’.

Dublin shortlisted for World Design Capital status in 2014 >