GAMBIA ON TRACK TO ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL ELECTRICITY TARGET
President Adama Barrow has said The Gambia is on track to achieve universal electricity access by the end of 2026, ahead of the global 2030 target.
The president was speaking in Njogon village in the North Bank Region where he officially inaugurated a major electricity access project. The project is part of many he is currently launching in rural Gambia.
He described the project as a significant milestone in the government’s drive to expand reliable power supply and achieve universal electricity access across the country. He added that this initiative reflects his administration’s commitment to delivering tangible development outcomes to all communities, particularly rural areas that have historically lacked basic infrastructure.
He noted that electricity access remains a major challenge across Africa, where more than 650 million people still live without power, limiting economic growth and social progress.
“The Gambia is proud to be associated with the Mission 300 agenda, not as a passive participant, but as a country determined to lead by example,” President Barrow said, referring to the continental initiative aimed at expanding electricity access to 300 million Africans by 2030.
According to the president, the newly inaugurated project will directly improve living conditions and expand opportunities for rural families by powering homes, schools, health facilities, and businesses. He emphasised that access to electricity would reduce manual labour, particularly for women, while enabling children to study under safer and more reliable lighting.
President Barrow announced that a total of 719 communities nationwide have now been electrified, including 209 communities in the North Bank Region. He described the achievement as unprecedented and a major step toward ensuring electricity becomes a basic service rather than a privilege.
“With the completion of these projects, our national electrification rate will rise from 73 percent to about 90 percent,” he said, adding that The Gambia is on track to achieve universal electricity access by the end of 2026, ahead of the global 2030 target.
The president further revealed that D400 million has been allocated in the 2026 national budget to support electrification efforts, alongside additional financing from development partners under the National Energy Compact initiative involving the World Bank, African Development Bank, and other institutions.
Highlighting electricity as a catalyst for socio-economic transformation, President Barrow said expanded access would boost agro-processing, small businesses, and industrial growth while promoting innovation and job creation.
He concluded by thanking development partners, including the World Bank, European Union, European Investment Bank, and Ecowas, for their continued support, urging stakeholders to work together to ensure no Gambian community is left behind.
Source: The Standard
