The Gambia on Course to Attain Universal Access to Electricity by 2025 - President Barrow

President Adama Barrow Saturday launched the 30KV Lamin Koto to Diabugu-Batapa electricity power line, saying the country is on course to attain universal access to electricity by 2025.

 

H.E Barrow said the availability of electricity is crucial to the country's development needs. He decried the exclusion of many rural communities from the benefits of electricity, saying it's a "social injustice."

 

President Barrow said it is a "right for citizens to access electricity, regardless of their residential area." He vowed to ensure that every settlement in the country will have access to electricity. The President said stabilizing the country's existing electricity supply was the initial task his Government undertook. Since attaining that objective, his goal is to provide low-cost electricity to every household in the country.

 

Honourable Fafa Sanyang, the Minister of Energy, said the Government would not relent until it attains its goal of universal electricity access throughout the country.

 

Nani Juwara, the Managing Director of NAWEC, said the project would benefit 40 communities in Sami and six in Sandu. Mr Juwara said the project is part of The Gambia Electricity Restoration and Modernisation Project (GERMP), which will eventually cover 92 communities in the West Coast Region, 185 in NBR, 64 in LRR, 139 in CRR, and 149 in URR by the end 2023.



The Governor of CRR, Honorable Abba Sanyang, thanked President Barrow and his Government for the initiative. He said Sami and Kiang were the only regions in the country without electricity for decades, and it's long overdue for people in those regions to also enjoy the benefits of electricity supply.

 

The Chief of Sami District Morro Jawla thanked President Barrow and his Government for fulfilling his promise.
Rachit Shah, the Director of MBH Power, the firm implementing the project, also spoke at the event.
The $8 Million project is a partnership between The Gambia government, the World Bank, the EU, and European Investment Bank.