Mali Closes Schools and Higher Education Centers as Islamist Militant Restrictions Exacerbates Fuel Emergency
The landlocked West African country has closed schools and universities across the nation due to a acute petrol shortage resulting from a embargo on petroleum supplies imposed by militant groups.
The Education Minister announced on public media that all education institutions would stay shut until November 9th, explaining that the transportation of personnel and pupils had been disrupted by the imposed limitations.
He asserted that the government officials were “working tirelessly” to resolve the crisis so that academic sessions could restart on the tenth of November.
For weeks, the nation has been experiencing a energy deficit, particularly in the administrative center, after armed groups from an jihadist network imposed a blockade by striking tankers on major highways.
Mali is landlocked, so all energy resources are delivered by road from bordering countries such as Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.
Long queues have been winding around petrol stations in the main city in the last several days, and the city's typically busy streets have now allegedly fallen quiet.
The ruling military council had earlier this month assured residents that it was only a short-term problem, but the crisis has endured.
Recently, the American diplomatic mission in Bamako announced that non-essential diplomatic staff and their families would evacuate Mali amid the deteriorating energy crisis and growing security concerns.
It said that the fuel disruptions had affected the energy availability and had the “ability to disturb” the general safety conditions in unforeseen manners.
Mali is currently ruled by a military junta headed by General Goïta, who took control in a coup in recently.
The junta had widespread approval when it assumed control, vowing to address the protracted safety emergency triggered by a autonomy movement in the northern region by ethnic Tuaregs, which was then hijacked by jihadist fighters.
The UN peacekeeping mission and European soldiers had been deployed in 2013 to address the increasing militant activity.
The international troops have left since the junta took over, and the ruling council has hired foreign fighters to address the violence.
However, the militant uprising has persisted and significant areas of the north and east of the nation remain outside government control.
