IVORY COAST: Cartoonist Charles Dadie shines light on Ivory Coast's growing power woes

Record ID: 182332

  • Title: IVORY COAST: Cartoonist Charles Dadie shines light on Ivory Coast's growing power woes
  • Date: 7th May 2013
  • Summary: ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST (RECENT) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CHARLES DADIE, KNOWN AS 'CHABA' DRAWING 'DELESTRON' CARTOON VARIOUS OF DELESTRON SKETCHES (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHARLES DADIE ALIAS 'CHABA,' CARTOONIST SAYING: "Delestron is a character that hides, and likes the dark. It's a character that goes around neighborhoods cutting off electricity supply, and then quickly disappears. That's a little bit how Delestron works, he's a little spooky and a fanatic." VARIOUS OF DADIE AND HIS COLLABORATOR WORKING ON AN IPAD, TALKING ABOUT 'DELESTRON' CARTOON VARIOUS OF SKETCHES OF DELESTRON IN THE DARK WITH SKYSCRAPERS IN BACKGROUND, SYMBOLIZING ABIDJAN WITH CAPTION READING IN FRENCH: "WHERE WILL I STRIKE TONIGHT?" (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHARLES DADIE, 'CHABA,' CARTOONIST SAYING: "I think that Delestron represents something that is in all of us, because it's a real problem and a Pan-African problem. And I think that it has also allowed the authorities to react a little quicker to address the situation. It's true that the power cuts have not yet stopped, but authorities are now trying to do what they can to solve the problem." VARIOUS OF EXTERIOR OF BARBER SHOP/VARIOUS OF BARBER CUTTING HAIR (SOUNDBITE) (French) DONATIEN ETTILE DJALAN, BARBER SAYING: "We are not able to work properly, we always have to wait for electricity to come back in order to cut our clients' hair. And because there are too many power cuts, clients no longer want to come back, and our business is running at a loss." VARIOUS OF STREET SCENES/ELECTRICITY POLES (SOUNDBITE) (French) GUY LAURENT N'GUESSAN, LOCAL BAR OWNER SAYING: "These power cuts have become so frequent, because of illegal cable connections. And all these illegal power connections drain the power capacity in our area. Can you imagine an power meter that is shared by 30 families, that's the reality here in Anono, and as as a result, it has impact a huge on us." VARIOUS OF AZITO POWER STATION VARIOUS OF CISSE SABATI, DIRECTOR IN CHARGE OF ENERGY/POWER AT THE MINISTRY OF MINING AND ENERGY TALKING TO COLLEAGUES IN HIS OFFICE (SOUNDBITE) (French) CISSE SABATI, ENERGY DIRECTOR FOR THE COUNTRY'S MINISTRY OF MINES AND ENERGY, SAYING: "By the end of 2013, we hope to reduce blackouts to an average of 35 hours, and with plans to reform the power sector, our aim is that by 2015-2016, we will be able to reduce it to an average of 15 hours of power cuts." VARIOUS OF ABIDJAN STREET SCENES AT NIGHT
  • Embargoed: 22nd May 2013 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Cote d'Ivoire
  • Country: Ivory Coast
  • Topics: Arts,Politics,Energy
  • Reuters ID: LVA278CY9B5LEUPTML956EYUPH0A
  • Story Text: When Charles Dadie became fed up with the constant power cuts in his home town of Abidjan, Ivory Coast, he went back to the drawing board.
    Dadie, an Ivorian cartoonist whose pen name is "Chaba," decided to do what he does best and use art and cartoons to address the issue.
    That is how Delestron' was born. The cartoon villain, whose name is a play on delestage -- French for blackouts, goes around various neighborhoods of Abidjan, cutting power supply.
    "Delestron is a character that hides, and likes the dark. It's a character that goes around neighborhoods cutting off electricity supply, and then quickly disappears. That's a little bit how Delestron works, he's a little spooky and a fanatic," he said.
    Though power cuts in some other West African countries are commonplace, Ivory Coast has largely been spared these bouts of darkness, compared to its neighbors.
    Ivory Coast, the world's top cocoa grower, has an enviably reliable power supply by regional standards and already exports electricity to its neighbours.
    Authorities blame the recent power disruptions on gangs stealing cables and rods.
    The cartoon character has become a hit on social media websites, where many say it reflects a growing concern among the Ivorians that these cuts are coming more frequently and could even increase in the country's commercial capital.
    Dadie adds that although Delestron is a light way of looking at the problem, he hopes that its popularity will push the government and the authorities into addressing the blackouts.
    "I think that Delestron represents something that is in all of us, because it's a real problem and a Pan-African problem. And I think that it has also allowed the authorities to react a little quicker to address the situation. It's true that the power cuts have not yet stopped, but authorities are now trying to do what they can to solve the problem," he said.
    Frustrated residents in some of Abidjan's neighborhoods say the constant power cuts have affected their ability to make a living.
    "We are not able to work properly, we always have to wait for electricity to come back in order to cut our clients' hair. And because there are too many power cuts, clients no longer want to come back, and our business is running at a loss," said barber, Donatien Etille Djalan.
    "These power cuts have become so frequent, because of illegal cable connections. And all these illegal power connections drain the power capacity in our area. Can you imagine a power meter that is shared by 30 families, that's the reality here in Anono, and as as a result, it has a huge impact on us," added Guy Laurent N'guessan.
    Ivorian authorities are pushing for heavy investments to boost power output and meet growing demand in the West African nation, where economic growth is rebounding after lagging the rest of Africa for a decade.
    Illegal cable connections and meter tampering are widespread in Ivory Coast.
    Ivory Coast also plans to clamp down on rampant fraud, which is costing its power utility CIE around 45 billion CFA francs ($90.07 million) in lost revenues each year.
    Sabati Cisse, energy director for the country's ministry of mines and energy said several projects due to come online in 2013 would add around 230 megawatts to current production capacity of 1,420 megawatts.
    "By the end of 2013, we hope to reduce blackouts to an average of 35 hours of power cuts, and with the programme of reforming the power sector, our aim is that by 2015-2016, we will be able to reduce it to an average of 15 hours of power cuts," he said.
    CIE which is partly owned by French industrial group Bouygues - posted a net profit of 8.39 billion CFA francs for 2012, up 32 percent from the previous year, on turnover of 324.60 billion CFA francs.
    As part of efforts to spur its recovery from a brief civil war in 2011, Ivory Coast is aiming to increase power production by around 80 percent over the next six years.
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