Senegal’s government has officially pulled the plug on R&B star Akon ’s ambitious $6 billion plan to build a futuristic city inspired by Marvel's Wakanda-style set up in the film Black Panther.
The project, on the country’s Atlantic coast, once hailed as a symbol of pan-African innovation and investment, has reportedly been abandoned after years of delays and little visible progress. A video showing the original vision for the city vs the current abandoned project and acres of undeveloped land has gone viral.

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According to various reports, Akon City , announced in 2020, was envisioned as a sprawling tech-powered smart city to be built on 136 acres in Mbodiene. The quiet farming village south of Dakar was reportedly cleared out to make way for the city that would replicae Marvel’s fictional Wakanda, with an eco-friendly infrastructure, crypto-based currency , and state-of-the-art facilities.
However, five years since its announcement, only a single building was completed.
Serigne Mamadou Mboup, head of SAPCO-Senegal—the state agency overseeing coastal development—confirmed to the national press: “That project no longer exists.” In its place, the government has announced a more modest, privately funded tourism project led by SAPCO.
The shift comes amid economic strain and missed commitments. Last August, Akon received a final warning from the government to begin construction or risk losing the land, after defaulting on payments owed to SAPCO. With no substantial development materialising, the government has reclaimed most of the site.
The revised plan will see 665 billion CFA francs (around $1.2 billion) invested in transforming the area into a major tourism destination. Of that, 600 billion is expected from private investors, with the remaining 65 billion coming from the state. However, Senegal’s recent debt crisis could make attracting investors more difficult.
Akon will retain just 8 hectares of the original site, which will now be integrated into a larger 500-hectare government-backed development.
SAPCO officials insist the revised project will still deliver key benefits, estimating the first phase could create around 15,000 jobs—providing a much-needed economic boost to the Mbodiène region.