The Gambia (a small West African nation of around 2.7 million people) has been battered by electricity blackouts lasting up to 48 hours since June, with outages intensifying during the peak of the hot season and pushing businesses, hospitals, and households to the brink. Fish vendors in the coastal town of Tanji are losing income as ice supplies collapse and catches rot, while tradespeople such as tailors and millers have been forced to abandon electric equipment entirely. The crisis has sparked two nights of street protests calling for President Adama Barrow to resign just months before December elections, with the government blaming surging demand, import constraints, and unpaid debts to Senegal's state electricity provider; Barrow has promised a new 24-megawatt generator will be operational by end of October.