By Haddy Touray
A member of the National Assembly for Latrikunda Sabiji, Yahya Sanyang, has expressed concern over the ongoing electricity shortages affecting parts of the country, describing the situation as a national economic and social challenge.
Raising a “Matter of the Day” in the Assembly on Thursday, Sanyang said the prolonged power outages were affecting households and businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, which he described as key drivers of the economy.
He said frequent blackouts were causing financial losses, including spoilage of food items and disruption of commercial activities.
Sanyang attributed the situation to reduced regional electricity imports and missing spare parts, but argued that the crisis also reflected insufficient investment in domestic power generation capacity over the years.
He called for increased investment in local energy infrastructure, including existing facilities, to reduce reliance on external power sources.
The lawmaker further urged authorities to provide a clear and urgent roadmap for stabilising the national electricity grid and improving supply reliability.
He said Gambians were entitled to stable electricity supply in return for taxes and utility payments, and called for accelerated efforts to address the ongoing challenges.