Rapper Akon has announced that he’s planning on building a second city in Africa, named Akon City, which will operate using Akon’s own cryptocurrency, Akoin.
Akon has been building a city in his native country of Senegal over the last few years, for which he secured $6billion (£4.3bn) funding.
Construction in Akon City Uganda is scheduled to complete in 2036, and has the backing of the Ugandan government, which announced that it has allotted one square mile of land for Akon City part two.
According to Uganda’s NBS TV, both Senegal’s Akon City and Akon City in Uganda will operate using Akoin.
Akon City Senegal will use a ‘smart cities’ approach, a combination of the internet of things (IoT) devices, software solutions, user interfaces (UI), and communication networks.
Akon City Uganda will likely also employ a smart city approach, and is expected to feature futuristic shopping malls, stadiums and recreational facilities like its sister city some 3,000 miles away.
According to the Akon City website, the project seeks to address the need for vibrant new community development, with a vision to create a business district, residential districts, a high-rise education district, a healthcare district, a technology district, a media district, an entertainment district, and sport facilities with a recreational enclave for the surrounding area to address the market need for the development in Senegal.
“The developed economy aims to adapt to future development,” states the website. “The current evolution required a flexible infrastructure to accommodate new real estate development. The fast pace of global changes, economic progress, poverty, technology and race continuously cause Senegal to face various new challenges.”
The Akon City project aims to play a vital role in the quest for solutions to these challenges:
“The knowledge we generate and the professionals we train are expected, and quite rightly, to help in providing local solutions as well as a critical component of human development.
“It is these professionals and individuals who develop the capacity and analytical skills that drive local economies, create new industries, support civil society, lead capable governments, and make critical decisions that will affect the entire economy.”
Akon City describes itself as a “futuristic development to become the beacon of innovation and human development by providing the best education solution to lead the economy of the country creating the most revolutionary industry. Akon City will set the standard for all future real estate development in Senegal as a country and region as a whole.”
However, questions have arisen over whether Ugandans will be able to afford living in Akon City. Akon responded at a press conference:
“I know if I put it there, they’re going to find a way to afford it because it’s going to motivate them. But ultimately when you create an opportunity, people grow with that opportunity, people learn with that opportunity, people are motivated with that opportunity.”
