Mali Closes Schools and Higher Education Centers as Islamist Militant Blockade Worsens Fuel Shortage
The landlocked West African country has temporarily halted schools and higher learning institutions across the nation due to a severe energy crisis caused by a embargo on fuel imports imposed by Islamist insurgents.
Top education official stated on public media that all academic facilities would remain closed until 9 November, clarifying that the movement of employees and learners had been affected by the blockade.
He stated that the authorities were “making every effort” to end the emergency so that educational activities could continue on 10 November.
For several weeks, Mali has been grappling with a fuel shortage, notably in the capital Bamako, after militants from an jihadist network imposed a restriction by targeting fuel trucks on major highways.
Mali is landlocked, so all fuel supplies are transported by truck from adjacent nations such as its western neighbor and Ivory Coast.
Extended lines have been winding around fuel outlets in the capital in the past few weeks, and the city's typically busy streets have now allegedly become deserted.
The junta-led administration had earlier this month assured citizens that it was only a short-term problem, but the situation has endured.
Recently, the United States diplomatic office in the capital stated that non-critical embassy personnel and their families would evacuate Mali amid the deteriorating petrol scarcity and increasing security concerns.
It said that the fuel disruptions had impacted the supply of electricity and had the “capacity to affect” the overall security situation in unpredictable ways.
The West African nation is currently ruled by a army council led by General Goïta, who seized power in a military overthrow in recently.
The ruling council had widespread approval when it assumed control, promising to address the ongoing instability caused by a autonomy movement in the northern region by ethnic Tuaregs, which was then taken over by extremist groups.
The United Nations stabilization force and France's military had been sent in a decade ago to address the growing rebellion.
These forces have withdrawn since the junta took over, and the military government has employed private military contractors to address the instability.
Nevertheless, the militant uprising has persisted and significant areas of the north and east of the nation remain outside government control.
