Mali Suspends Educational Institutions and Universities as Islamist Militant Restrictions Intensifies Fuel Crisis

Long queues at petrol stations in Mali
Lengthy lines have been forming around gas stations in the last few days

Mali has temporarily halted schools and higher learning institutions countrywide due to a acute energy crisis caused by a restriction on energy resources enforced by militant groups.

Top education official announced on state television that all learning centers would be inactive until November 9th, clarifying that the movement of employees and learners had been impacted by the imposed limitations.

He asserted that the authorities were “working tirelessly” to end the situation so that classes could resume on the tenth of November.

For several weeks, the nation has been experiencing a fuel shortage, especially in the capital Bamako, after militants from an jihadist network enforced a blockade by attacking transport vehicles on key routes.

Mali is without coastal access, so all petroleum products are brought in by truck from adjacent nations such as its western neighbor and Côte d'Ivoire.

Long queues have been forming around petrol stations in the capital in the past few weeks, and the city's normally bustling streets have now apparently become deserted.

The military government had previously assured the public that it was only a temporary issue, but the situation has persisted.

In the past few days, the United States diplomatic office in Bamako stated that non-critical embassy personnel and their relatives would evacuate Mali amid the worsening fuel shortage and growing safety issues.

It explained that the energy interruptions had disrupted the supply of electricity and had the “capacity to affect” the overall security situation in unforeseen manners.

Mali is now led by a military junta headed by the military leader, who seized power in a takeover in two years ago.

The junta had public backing when it came to authority, vowing to deal with the ongoing instability prompted by a independence uprising in the northern territories by Tuareg communities, which was then hijacked by extremist groups.

The United Nations stabilization force and European soldiers had been stationed in 2013 to address the escalating insurgency.

Both have withdrawn since the junta took over, and the current administration has contracted foreign fighters to address the instability.

Nonetheless, the Islamist rebellion has continued and extensive regions of the northern and eastern territories of the nation remain not under administrative command.

William Beltran
William Beltran

A passionate collector and writer specializing in gaming memorabilia and unique finds.