Persistent electricity outages are taking a heavy toll on businesses across the Greater Banjul Area and beyond, with traders, fish vendors, and tailors reporting mounting losses as they struggle to cope with prolonged blackouts and rising generator costs.
The crisis comes as the National Water and Electricity Company continues to grapple with a power supply deficit exceeding 50 percent, forcing nationwide load-shedding that has left some communities without electricity for up to 10 hours a day.
NAWEC has attributed the situation to reduced electricity imports from Senelec, delays in maintenance work on domestic backup plants, and operational challenges linked to high fuel costs. The utility says power supply is expected to improve gradually by mid-June if regional imports resume as anticipated and ongoing maintenance works are completed on schedule.
For many business owners, however, the damage is already being felt.
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Fish Vendors Count Their Losses
At the Bakoteh Fish Market, traders say unreliable electricity has made it nearly impossible to preserve unsold stock, resulting in significant financial losses.
"I buy fish from Tanji and sell them here in Bakoteh," said vendor Oumie Manneh. "Five days ago, all the fish I stored in my refrigerator spoiled because of the power outage. Since then, I have not gone back to the market."
A visit to the market found many vendors frustrated and scaling back operations to avoid further losses.
"You cannot sell all your fish in one day," explained fish seller Fatou Jatta. "That is why we keep refrigerators. But now electricity is so unreliable that storing fish has become a risk. Ice cubes are also difficult to find. Some of us have decided to stop selling until the situation improves."
Tailors Struggle to Meet Orders
In Brikama, where demand for tailoring services remains high following the Tobaski festivities, business owners say the power cuts have disrupted production and delayed customer orders.
The sound of generators now dominates the town's tailoring workshops as artisans attempt to keep their machines running.
"We are suffering unnecessarily, and nobody is telling us the full extent of the problem," said tailor Omar Ceesay. "We accepted many orders expecting to complete them on time, but the electricity situation has pushed us well behind schedule."
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According to Ceesay, the outages also forced him to miss Tobaski celebrations with his family in the Central River Region because he remained at his shop trying to clear a growing backlog of work.
Rising Costs, Shrinking Profits
Across the commercial centres visited, business owners expressed similar concerns. While generators have become essential for survival, the rising cost of fuel is eating into already thin profit margins.
Many say they are now spending more on fuel than they earn from their businesses, raising fears that some small enterprises may be forced to suspend operations if the crisis persists.
As the country awaits improvements in electricity supply, entrepreneurs are calling for urgent interventions to ease the burden on businesses already struggling with high operating costs and a challenging economic environment.
"We understand there are problems," one trader remarked, "but businesses cannot survive on promises. We need reliable electricity."
