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Akon builds his own city in Senegal
SENEGAL, Africa - Rapper and entrepreneur Akon has created a new city in Senegal that trades exclusively with his own digital cash currency.
The agreement for “Akon City” was finalized on Monday, according to the “Locked Up” singer’s Twitter.
"Looking forward to hosting you there in the future," Akon tweeted.
Akon City will be built on 2,000 acres of land that was gifted to the Grammy-nominated artist by Senegalese President Macky Sall. The city will operate using “Akoin,” a cryptocurrency developed by Akon to promote financial independence from African governments.
"I think that blockchain and crypto could be the savior for Africa in many ways because it brings the power back to the people and brings the security back into the currency system," Akon said.
“[It] also allows the people to utilize it in ways where they can advance themselves and not allow government to do those things that are keeping them down.”
RELATED: Akon wants to use his coin to help Africa
Akon mapped out his vision for the city during an appearence on Nick Cannon’s radio show last year.
“[It’s] A real physical place, it’s going to have a real airport,” he explained to Cannon. “It’s a 10-year building block so we’re doing it in stages.”
Construction on the project started in March 2019 and stage two is scheduled to begin sometime in 2025.
In recent years, Akon, a native of Senegal, has shifted away from music in favor of focusing on business endeavors that support the people of Africa.
His most recent business venture, Akon Lighting Africa, focuses on providing solar energy to African countries.
This story was reported from Los Angeles.