Akon moves ahead with £4.5bn ‘real-life Wakanda’ city project in Senegal

R&B star Akon is pushing ahead with his $6bn (£4.5bn) plan to create a futuristic pan-African city in Senegal.

The project has been described by Akon as a “real-life Wakanda”, a reference to the fictional African state from the Marvel Comic series (and 2018 blockbuster film) Black Panther.

On Monday (31 August), Akon revealed he hoped the city would create jobs in Senegal, and serve as a “home back home” for African-Americans and other people facing racial discrimination.

“The system back home treats them unfairly in so many different ways that you can never imagine. And they only go through it because they feel that there is no other way,” he said.

“So if you’re coming from America or Europe or elsewhere in the diaspora and you feel that you want to visit Africa, we want Senegal to be your first stop.”

Akon was born in St Louis, Missouri, but spent much of his childhood in Senegal.

On Monday, Akon travelled with government officials to Mbodienne – around 62 miles from the capital, Dakar, where construction is planned to take place.

Akon revealed that the project has already secured around a third of the necessary money, although non-disclosure agreements prevented him from naming the donors.

The project – referred to as “Akon City” – promises to fulfil a variety of functions, featuring a seaside resort, technology hub, recording studios and a zone called “Senewood”, which aims to boost Senegal’s film industry.

In the plan’s later phases, Akon City will open its own hospital and police station, as well as its own cryptocurrency, which has already been termed “AKoin”.

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