Mali Suspends Schools and Universities as Islamist Militant Restrictions Worsens Fuel Crisis

Long queues at petrol stations in Mali
Lengthy lines have been snaking around petrol stations in the past few weeks

Mali has closed educational facilities and colleges across the nation due to a critical petrol shortage resulting from a blockade on petroleum supplies implemented by militant groups.

Minister of Education announced on state television that all academic facilities would remain closed until November 9th, clarifying that the transportation of staff and learners had been disrupted by the blockade.

He emphasized that the administration were “doing everything possible” to resolve the situation so that classes could continue on 10 November.

For several weeks, Mali has been grappling with a petrol crisis, particularly in the administrative center, after armed groups from an al-Qaeda-linked organization imposed a blockade by targeting transport vehicles on major highways.

Mali is surrounded by land, so all fuel supplies are brought in by road from bordering countries such as its western neighbor and Côte d'Ivoire.

Lengthy waits have been forming around petrol stations in Bamako in the last several days, and the city's normally bustling streets have now allegedly grown silent.

The ruling military council had earlier this month assured citizens that it was only a passing concern, but the situation has persisted.

Recently, the US Embassy in Bamako declared that non-essential diplomatic staff and their families would depart the country amid the intensifying fuel shortage and growing protection worries.

It said that the energy interruptions had disrupted the supply of electricity and had the “potential to disrupt” the broader protection environment in unpredictable ways.

Mali is presently governed by a military junta headed by General Goïta, who took control in a takeover in two years ago.

The ruling council had popular support when it came to authority, vowing to deal with the long-running security crisis prompted by a autonomy movement in the north by ethnic Tuaregs, which was then hijacked by jihadist fighters.

The United Nations stabilization force and France's military had been stationed in 2013 to address the increasing militant activity.

The international troops have departed since the new administration came in, and the military government has hired foreign fighters to address the violence.

Nonetheless, the jihadist insurgency has endured and extensive regions of the north and east of the nation remain beyond state authority.

Jason Rodriguez
Jason Rodriguez

A tech enthusiast and gaming strategist with over a decade of experience in digital entertainment and software development.