The West African nation Closes Schools and Universities as Jihadist Blockade Intensifies Fuel Crisis
The landlocked West African country has suspended educational facilities and universities across the nation due to a severe energy crisis triggered by a blockade on fuel imports imposed by militant groups.
The Education Minister announced on state television that all education institutions would be inactive until the ninth of November, noting that the travel of personnel and students had been disrupted by the restrictions.
He emphasized that the government officials were “doing everything possible” to alleviate the emergency so that classes could restart on November 10th.
For a number of weeks, the nation has been facing a energy deficit, especially in the capital Bamako, after insurgents from an jihadist network enforced a embargo by attacking tankers on major highways.
The country is surrounded by land, so all fuel supplies are delivered by land routes from adjacent nations such as Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.
Extended lines have been snaking around fuel outlets in the capital in the past few weeks, and the city's normally bustling streets have now reportedly become deserted.
The military government had previously promised the public that it was only a passing concern, but the situation has continued.
In the past few days, the US Embassy in the capital declared that non-critical embassy personnel and their relatives would evacuate the country amid the worsening energy crisis and growing security concerns.
It explained that the petroleum supply issues had affected the power distribution and had the “capacity to affect” the general safety conditions in unforeseen manners.
The West African nation is now led by a armed forces administration led by the military leader, who assumed authority in a takeover in two years ago.
The ruling council had popular support when it assumed control, vowing to deal with the protracted safety emergency prompted by a independence uprising in the northern territories by Tuareg communities, which was then taken over by extremist groups.
The UN peacekeeping mission and France's military had been deployed in a decade ago to deal with the increasing militant activity.
The international troops have left since the new administration came in, and the ruling council has hired Russian mercenaries to address the insecurity.
Nonetheless, the Islamist rebellion has continued and large parts of the north and east of the nation remain outside government control.
