The programme is cutting diesel use, making the network more reliable and lowering emissions.
Africell is making strong progress in its deployment of solar-powered cell sites across The Gambia. Thirty-two sites are now fully solar equipped with three more installations actively underway. By the end of 2027, Africell aims to have added solar capability to a total of 75 sites across the Greater Banjul Area and the Upcountry region of the west African state.
Why solar makes economic sense
Roughly half of Africa’s half a million mobile towers are powered by diesel generators. However, recent tightening in global fuel markets thanks to instability in the Middle East and elsewhere has made it more expensive and harder to obtain. In off-grid areas, which includes most of rural Africa, energy can make up as much as 60% of a tower’s operating costs. Diesel specifically brings further headaches, from transport logistics to theft and maintenance – not to mention its environmental impact.
Solar changes that. Sunlight is free, and battery storage keeps sites running through the night. Each site that moves to solar needs fewer fuel deliveries, demands less intensive security, and overall costs less to run. Solar is also protected from sudden jumps in fuel prices. Solar-powered towers are less exposed to fuel shortages and generator breakdowns, which improves reliability in underserved areas. Many people rely on their phone for services including Afrimoney payments, calls to family or help in an emergency. For them, a site that stays on means business and daily life can carry on.
Cleaner air, lower emissions
Every diesel generator that is switched off means less fuel burned, less noise and lower carbon emissions. With 75 sites in the programme, Africell is making a meaningful contribution to a cleaner Gambia, a country on the perilous front lines of climate change which is exposed to a pincer movement of two threats: rising sea levels and desertification. The programme also supports the country’s wider move towards renewable energy – a project which, given The Gambia’s abundant sun, has enormous potential for success.
Twenty-six years of investment
The solar rollout is the latest step in Africell The Gambia’s long record of investment and innovation. Africell launched in The Gambia in 2001 and has been the country’s market leader by subscribers since 2006. Over the years since, the company has kept investing in wider coverage, faster data and better customer service. Moving the network onto solar power continues that work: building a network that is stronger, cheaper to run, more reliable, friendlier to the environment, and ready for the future.
Additional sources: Associated Press
