More than 20,788 households have been connected to electricity in 90 localities in Guinea-Bissau through the ECOWAS-REAP regional project, ECOWAS announced in a tally published on 3 November. The organisation estimates the number of beneficiaries in the country at around 145,000 people.
In The Gambia, the tally reaches around 43,090 households in 400 localities. These results were presented at the project's latest steering committee meeting, which opened on 2 November in Abuja, ahead of a scheduled closure on 31 December 2026.
A programme of grids and connections
Launched in 2019, ECOWAS-REAP covers Guinea-Bissau, The Gambia and Mali. It benefits from concessional financing of 225 million dollars from the International Development Association, the World Bank's concessional window. Its stated objective was to provide electricity services to 2.04 million people, a target that should be distinguished from the connections now reported.
The programme covers grid extension and the equipment needed to use it. Its October presentation foresees around 3,900 kilometres of medium-voltage lines, 1,060 transformer substations and 3,700 kilometres of low-voltage networks, as well as connections and prepaid or smart meters. This scope describes the programme and is not a count of works completed in November.
Preparations for the closure had already included a mission to The Gambia from 12 to 16 October. Teams reviewed progress, installations and their operation, as well as financial management, procurement and environmental and social safeguards. The exercise was expected to yield lessons for the next regional projects.
Completion remains a challenge in Mali. Citing security and contractual constraints, its national director of energy has requested at least 30 additional months, subject to World Bank approval. ECOWAS is also calling for the infrastructure to be durably handed over to national electricity utilities.