SENEGAL’S $6 BILLION AKON CITY GIVEN THE GREEN LIGHT

THE SENEGALESE American RnB singer Akon has launched a sustainable, futuristic real estate project near Mbodième, a coastal village in west Senegal. Akon City will consist of a shopping mall, restaurants, a hospital, a school, a police station and more, all of which will be powered by a photovoltaic solar power plant. The artist was inspired by the fictional kingdom of Wakanda in the Marvel movie Black Panther.

The cost of the project amounts to $6 billion (nearly 80 percent of Senegal’s 2020 budget) and is integrated into the country’s tourism vision. It has been designated a special tax zone by the Senegalese government, a move likely to attract foreign investors.

Akon City is being implemented by consulting and engineering firm KE International and designed by architecture firm Bakri & Associates Development Consultants. Construction will begin in Q1 of 2021.