Chinese Government provides RMB 180 million grant for Museum of Black Civilizations Construction Project

Project narrative

In January 2010, the Chinese Government and the Government of Senegal signed letters of exchange related to the Museum of Black Civilizations Construction Project. The Chinese Government committed RMB 180 million of grant funding for this project. This project involved the construction of a four-story building on a 2.2 hectare site with a total construction area of 14,665 square meters. The building has a flat cylindrical shape, and it includes exhibition halls, ceremonial halls, digital projection halls, and offices. The purpose of the museum is to highlight "Africa's contribution to the world's cultural and scientific patrimony." Shanghai Construction Engineering Group was the contractor responsible for project implementation. It signed a project implementation contract with the Government of Senegal in November 2011. Then, on December 20, 2011, a ceremonial foundation-laying ceremony was organized. However, construction did not begin until December 20, 2013. Senegal’s Ministry of Culture (Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication) originally anticipated that the project would take 28 months to complete, but the project was ultimately completed and handed over to the authorities on January 25, 2016. The museum was opened to the public on December 6, 2018. The museum is directed by Hamady Bocoum, an archaeologist and researcher at University Cheikh-Anta-Diop.