Akon Plans To Build University, Hospitals For Under Privileged In Africa

 R&B singer/musicA mogul Akon has announced the launch of a new foundation to help serve under privileged children in Africa.

According to Akon, the Konfidence Foundation was established to create a better future for the children of Africa.

"It all strung from concept of creating a better future for the kids in Africa," Akon said. "I started realizing as I was growing up and as I was coming up in this business, I allowed myself to be educated, period.  And I think that was the moment where I became more of an entrepreneur; I understood what the essence of business was."

Akon has experienced major success over the course of 2010 with the runaway success of Lady Gaga, who is signed to his record label Konlive.

Other acts on Akon's label include T-Pain, Kardinal Offishall, Ya Boy, Red Cafe, Rock City, French Montana and others.

Akon, who was born in Senegal, applied the knowledge and education he received from mentors and successful executives like Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Jimmy Iovine and Steve Rifkind, to his own label.

And the new foundation is his way of reinvesting his money into the African continent. The mogul recently opened an elementary school in his Senegal, using the proceeds he earned from touring.

"You start to realize education really is the key," Akon said. "You just got to allow yourself to absorb the information and properly use it. With that thought in mind, when we created the Konfidence Foundation, it was more so to find a platform to educate all these children so that they can have a better future with what’s left to develop in Africa. We built my first elementary school in Senegal, which is an incredible accomplishment because I did it with my own money, my tour money and did it myself."

According to Akon, his next project will be to create and establish a new University in Senegal for students, in addition to future plans to build hospitals in the country.

"We feel like education doesn’t mean anything if you aren’t healthy," Akon said. "Between health and education those are the two key things to rebuild any country. We want to start with the kids because they have a lot more growing up to do and a lot more to give in order to create a future for ourselves."