The West African nation Closes Educational Institutions and Universities as Islamist Militant Blockade Worsens Petrol Crisis
The landlocked West African country has temporarily halted schools and colleges throughout the country due to a severe energy crisis triggered by a blockade on petroleum supplies enforced by militant groups.
Top education official announced on national broadcast that all education institutions would remain closed until 9 November, explaining that the movement of personnel and learners had been affected by the blockade.
He asserted that the authorities were “working tirelessly” to alleviate the crisis so that educational activities could resume on 10 November.
For weeks, the nation has been facing a fuel shortage, especially in the main city, after militants from an al-Qaeda-linked organization enforced a embargo by striking tankers on key routes.
The country is landlocked, so all petroleum products are brought in by land routes from bordering countries such as its western neighbor and Ivory Coast.
Extended lines have been snaking around petrol stations in Bamako in recent weeks, and the city's typically busy streets have now apparently grown silent.
The ruling military council had earlier this month promised citizens that it was only a passing concern, but the crisis has continued.
In the past few days, the American diplomatic mission in Bamako declared that non-essential diplomatic staff and their dependents would leave the country amid the intensifying energy crisis and growing security concerns.
It said that the energy interruptions had impacted the power distribution and had the “potential to disrupt” the broader protection environment in unpredictable ways.
Mali is now led by a military junta headed by Gen Assimi Goïta, who took control in a military overthrow in two years ago.
The junta had public backing when it assumed control, vowing to deal with the ongoing instability triggered by a independence uprising in the northern territories by Tuareg communities, which was then taken over by jihadist fighters.
The UN peacekeeping mission and French forces had been sent in a decade ago to address the escalating insurgency.
These forces have departed since the junta took over, and the ruling council has employed Russian mercenaries to combat the insecurity.
Nonetheless, the jihadist insurgency has continued and large parts of the northern and eastern zones of the country remain not under administrative command.
