Akon recently finalized an agreement to build a “futuristic,” eco-friendly, cryptocurrency-based city in his home country of Senegal, he announced on social media on Monday (Jan. 13).
“Just finalized the agreement for AKON CITY in Senegal,” he tweeted. “Looking forward to hosting you there in the future.”
Just finalized the agreement for AKON CITY in Senegal. Looking forward to hosting you there in the future pic.twitter.com/dsoYpmjnpf
— AKON (@Akon) January 13, 2020
Akon City will be built in the village of Mbodiene (about six miles south of Senegal’s capital city of Dakar), the Jakarta Times reports.The city will utilize sustainable energy resources in addition to utilizing crypto currency. Akon launched his own cryptocurrency, Akoin, in 2018.
A spokesperson for Senegal’s tourism ministry said that Akon’s goal is to build an eco-friendly tourism village.
Aside from Senegal, Akon traveled to Abu Dhabi for an energy summit hosted by MASDAR, one of the world’s lead renewable energy companies.
Thank u Masdar for an amazing sustainable week in Abu Dhabi. pic.twitter.com/NfS9TSQTks
— AKON (@Akon) January 15, 2020
The 46-year-old entrepreneur, who was born in Senegal but raised mostly in the states, founded Akon Lighting Africa to provide sustainable energy solutions to the continent, a mission that he has been working on for several years.
“There’s always been so many initiatives in Africa, so much money raised in Africa, but there’s never no results and it got to the point where you get tired of it,” he said in a 2015 interview. “I took it more personal than anything and I wanted to be in a position to where if I move forward on something I wanted to actually see it materialize.”
Akon also expanded the brand to include Akon Lighting America, the first African-American owned solar energy company of its kind.