When the Smile Hides in Electricity
Face of Truth
Ibrahim Shaglawi
Just as coincidence hides in a bend in the road, and wild honey lies in the nectar—as described by the poet Muhammad Al-Makki Ibrahim—so too does the smile, in the reality of Sudan, hide in electricity… as do the services of water, bread, and medical care, all of which drive the wheel of production and help establish security and peace.
Electricity, for Sudanese people, is no longer just a current flowing through wires; it has become a symbol of civilian life, a restoration of the minimum level of stability and continuity of life. It truly hides in the details of fleeting smiles and the features of genuine joy when it returns after a long absence. Such has become the necessary state of affairs, despite the ongoing targeting of facilities in Merowe, Atbara, and Dongola by the Rapid Support Forces militia.
Yesterday, in one of the dental clinics in Omdurman—a city that, despite the war, still maintains its remarkable capacity for resilience, defiance, and pride—I witnessed spontaneous and overlapping scenes that were deeply impactful and meaningful.
After nearly two weeks of electricity outage throughout Khartoum, power suddenly returned yesterday. It was not merely a technical restoration but a return of life and vitality. The place erupted with joy and applause, and rounds of gunfire were fired—as is customary among people in war zones. A child laughed with astonishing innocence, an elderly man called the grocery store to resume purchases, a doctor stepped out of his clinic to inform his family over the phone about the end of their forced stay at the grandfather’s house, and a policeman at the gate smiled and told me: “The return of electricity means enhanced security and broader coverage at night… it means shifting effort from chasing darkness to protecting people.”
These scenes are neither fictional nor merely emotional responses, but rather socially and politically significant indicators that deserve attention. As we know, in times of crisis, basic services become a mirror reflecting the effectiveness—or absence—of the state. Electricity—like water and medicine—not only means survival, but signals to the citizen that they are part of the public concern of the government and the state, and that somewhere, someone is thinking about their safety and stability.
Amid this turbulent reality, people have turned to alternative energy sources, especially solar power, whose market has recently seen a notable boom. What was once a limited elite solution has become a widespread popular horizon, full of opportunities and challenges. However, this shift faces regulatory and administrative obstacles that hinder broader adoption.
Thus, the moment calls upon the government to move from the role of overseer to that of enabler, by lifting customs and tax restrictions on all energy alternatives, facilitating their entry, and offering incentives to those wishing to invest in them, especially in rural and off-grid areas.
Decentralized energy production is no longer a luxury or mere environmental option; it has become a national and economic necessity that strengthens community resilience and stability, reduces the burden on the state, restores the lost balance between center and periphery, urban and rural, and pushes people toward self-reliance within a framework governed by shared responsibility… it may even become a reverse trade, offered to others for compensation.
In such a context, the return of electricity is not merely a service-related detail but a political and security event, tied to social peace and the redefinition of the relationship between the state and its citizens. It is no surprise then that a smile is born from the light of a lamp, just as a garden is hidden in a flower, or the competence of the state—in its truest sense—lies hidden in a lightbulb that turns on, or in services long awaited that suddenly appear after darkness had almost surrendered people to the unknown.
From what we see in the #Face_of_Truth, the return of electricity after a long outage not only lights up residential neighborhoods and powers the wheel of production, but also reveals the deep need to rebuild the relationship between the state and its citizens on more just, flexible, and responsible foundations.
In the context of the anticipated reconstruction, alternative energy sources emerge not as an elite luxury, but as a national necessity. This requires the Ministry of Finance to lift tariff and tax restrictions that hinder access, and the Ministry of Energy and Electricity to make further efforts to expand coverage, enhance transparency in resource management, and adopt broader horizons in planning.
As for the citizen, their responsibility is to keep pace with this transformation through conservation and a turn toward sustainable alternatives, because building the future will not be achieved by the state alone, but through the conscious and attentive partnership of all.
Wishing you health and well-being.