The West African nation Shuts Down Educational Institutions and Higher Education Centers as Jihadist Blockade Intensifies Fuel Shortage
Mali has suspended educational facilities and colleges throughout the country due to a critical energy crisis caused by a restriction on petroleum supplies implemented by jihadist fighters.
Minister of Education stated on national broadcast that all education institutions would be inactive until 9 November, clarifying that the travel of employees and pupils had been disrupted by the restrictions.
He stated that the government officials were “working tirelessly” to alleviate the situation so that educational activities could continue on November 10th.
For weeks, Mali has been facing a fuel shortage, notably in the administrative center, after insurgents from an al-Qaeda affiliate initiated a blockade by targeting fuel trucks on key routes.
The country is without coastal access, so all energy resources are delivered by land routes from bordering countries such as Senegal and Ivory Coast.
Extended lines have been winding around petrol stations in Bamako in the past few weeks, and the city's usually crowded streets have now reportedly grown silent.
The military government had in recent days assured the public that it was only a passing concern, but the situation has persisted.
In the past few days, the US Embassy in the capital stated that non-essential diplomatic staff and their dependents would depart the country amid the deteriorating petrol scarcity and escalating security concerns.
It noted that the petroleum supply issues had affected the energy availability and had the “potential to disrupt” the broader protection environment in unexpected forms.
Mali is presently governed by a army council under the leadership of Gen Assimi Goïta, who took control in a takeover in two years ago.
The ruling council had public backing when it took power, vowing to tackle the protracted safety emergency triggered by a independence uprising in the northern territories by Tuareg communities, which was then hijacked by extremist groups.
The international UN troops and French forces had been sent in previously to address the escalating insurgency.
The international troops have withdrawn since the new administration came in, and the military government has contracted Russian mercenaries to tackle the violence.
Nonetheless, the Islamist rebellion has continued and significant areas of the north and east of the nation remain beyond state authority.
