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US hip hop star Akon has come under scrutiny after his promised futuristic city worth $6 billion to be built in his native Senegal is yet to start.
A year ago he laid the first stone, with hopes of the project materializing in the coming years but people are beginning to have doubts how soon the megaproject will take shape.
In 2018, Akon said he’s planning to build a “crypto city” in Senegal which he calls “a real-life Wakanda”.
Just like the fictional land of Wakanda in Marvel’s Black Panther, Akon promises says his city will be a “futuristic environment”.
Akon was “gifted” 2,000 acres of land by the President of Senegal to build the city – which is also named after himself.
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Akon Crypto City will apparently be “a short drive” from Dakar, the capital of Senegal.
He calls it “the first 100% crypto-based city with AKoin at the centre of transactional life”.
In 2020 a deal to have him build the Akon City was finalized but building work is yet to start.
“They laid the foundation stone with a lot of speeches and promises,” said Jules Thiamane, a 35-year-old local who works in the tourism industry.
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Thiamane was quoted by the AFP as saying that “Compared to everything that was announced, I don’t think we have seen much yet.”
Akon’s family originally hails from Senegal and despite the delays for the project, many residents still have hopes should work begin, it will provide jobs for many.
In April this year, Akon visited Uganda and also announced that he will be building similar city in that country.
The government of Uganda had agreed to allocate him land of the size of 1 square mile.
According to Uganda’s government, Akon expressed interest to invest in solar energy, tourism sectors and infrastructure development areas.
Source: Africafeeds.com
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