Egypt blackouts become symbol of malaise a decade after Sisi's rise

A general view shows light around the mosque of Al-Fattah Al-Alim in the New Administrative Capital (NAC), east of Cairo, Egypt August 2, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh

CAIRO (Reuters) - For Egyptians grown used to a decade of reliable power supplies and boasts of vast investments in generation, a wave of rolling blackouts came as a shock - shaking faith in President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's record months before an election.

Along with record inflation and a sharp weakening of the currency, the outages have become a potent symptom of the worst economic crisis to hit Egypt since Sisi took power in 2014 on promises of stability and development.