A new public accountability initiative aimed at scrutinizing the National Water and Electricity Company (NAWEC) was launched today by the Edward Franvis Small Center for Rights and Justice (EFSCRJ).
Titled NAWEC Watch, the project will systematically track investments, performance, governance, and service delivery of the utility provider that supplies electricity and water to millions of Gambians. Organisers say the goal is to promote greater transparency and accountability in a sector long plagued by chronic failures.
“Electricity and water are not luxuries. They are essential public goods that underpin public health, education, economic growth, national security, and human dignity,” the group stated. Despite billions of dalasi and hundreds of millions of dollars invested over decades from government budgets and development partners, most Gambians continue to face frequent power outages, erratic water supply, and substandard services.
EFSCRJ emphasized that the persistent crisis is “not the result of a lack of resources or opportunities,” but rather stems from poor leadership, lack of vision, mismanagement, corruption, inefficiency, and weak accountability mechanisms.
The initiative will analyze a wide range of public documents, including NAWEC’s own reports, National Audit Office findings, National Assembly proceedings, commissions of inquiry, development partner evaluations, civil society assessments, and investigative journalism.
By making this information accessible and understandable to ordinary citizens, NAWEC Watch hopes to empower Gambians to demand better performance.
The group called on the public to follow the project’s updates and share relevant information. “Follow NAWEC Watch as we follow the evidence, scrutinize the records, and demand answers in the public interest,” it said.
Accountability, organizers stressed, is the first crucial step toward delivering reliable utility services for all Gambians.
