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Once complete, the self-contained community will trade using the Akoin – a cryptocurrency to be launched by the singer and philanthropist later this year.

The 46-year-old artist was this week given permission to create Akon City on land given to him in 2018 by Senegal’s president – Macky Sall.

The project is based close to the picturesque coastal town of Mbodiene and an hour away from Blaise Diagne International Airport. By the time Akon City is complete, however, Senegal’s latest international airport will be officially opened just a ten-minute drive away.

It is understood groundwork on the ambitious scheme has already begun as the musician aims to have the city fully up and running by the end of the decade.

“It’s a 10-year building block, so we’re doing it in stages,” he recently explained to Los Angeles radio station Power FM.

“We started construction in March 2019 and stage two is going to be 2025.”

Estimates put the cost of constructing the self-sufficient, eco-friendly city at around $2 billion.