The Gambia’s President Adama Barrow has urged citizens to remain calm over prolonged power cuts, saying the country is not alone in facing an electricity crisis that has affected several parts of West Africa.
His comments follow protests on Monday night in the capital Banjul and surrounding areas over blackouts that residents say have sometimes lasted up to 48 hours.
“When you lie down in the heat and the dark, believe that you are not alone in that darkness,” Barrow said, pledging to boost power supplies by next month.
The Gambia supplements its own generation with imported electricity, including supplies from Guinea and neighbouring Senegal.
The tiny West African country has endured persistent blackouts since June, with outages becoming longer and more frequent during the current hot season as soaring temperatures drive up electricity demand.
Frustration boiled over on Monday night, when protesters took to the streets in Banjul and surrounding areas, burning tyres and blocking roads over the prolonged power cuts.
Police used tear gas to disperse crowds in Westfield area as they moved towards the headquarters of the national electricity company, Nawec, with some chanting. “Barrow must go”.
Protesters also gathered outside the vice-president’s residence in Farato, where banners at an office of Barrow’s ruling National People’s Party were damaged.
The unrest comes just months before a presidential election expected in December, in which Barrow is seeking a controversial third term.
In a televised address on Tuesday night, Barrow acknowledged the hardship caused by the blackouts but warned protesters against damaging public infrastructure, saying it would only worsen the disruption and divert money towards repairs.
“Let us not destroy in a moment of anger what we suffered so long to gain,” he said.
The president admitted there had been shortcomings in the government’s planning, power generation and maintenance systems, calling the resulting outages “a national security issue” and an “emergency”.
“I know that the fans have stopped turning, children work in the dark, mothers throw away stale food, and the heat is unbearable by day and by night,” the president, promising that supplies would improve by the end of October.
He said a new 24-megawatt generating unit was being installed at the Brikama power station and would be commissioned by the end of next month.
A contract has also been awarded for a 50MW solar power plant in Soma, although no completion date was given.
“For a system of our size, this is considerable power, enough to make a big difference in your homes,” Barrow added.
The president visited facilities for the national energy utility on Tuesday morning and promised that The Gambia would receive new generators this week.
Gallo Saidy, the Nawec chief, also appealed for patience, saying reduced electricity imports from the regional grid had contributed to the shortages.
He said lower rainfall this year had reduced the electricity available through the regional network.
“We are aware of the frustration and constraints that the Gambian people have,” he said. “We are just asking The Gambian people to give us a little bit of time and patience.”
Nawec had warned in August that unusually high temperatures had driven a surge in electricity demand, while a technical problem had also affected a major generating unit supplying imported power.
