🔗 Share this article The West African nation Shuts Down Educational Institutions and Universities as Jihadist Restrictions Exacerbates Fuel Shortage Extended queues have been forming around petrol stations in recent weeks The landlocked West African country has temporarily halted schools and higher learning institutions across the nation due to a critical fuel scarcity resulting from a embargo on fuel imports enforced by jihadist fighters. The Education Minister stated on public media that all learning centers would stay shut until 9 November, clarifying that the travel of personnel and students had been affected by the blockade. He asserted that the authorities were “making every effort” to end the crisis so that educational activities could restart on 10 November. For a number of weeks, Mali has been experiencing a petrol crisis, notably in the administrative center, after militants from an jihadist network imposed a blockade by striking transport vehicles on major highways. The country is surrounded by land, so all petroleum products are brought in by land routes from neighboring states such as Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire. Lengthy waits have been forming around fuel outlets in Bamako in recent weeks, and the city's usually crowded streets have now reportedly grown silent. The ruling military council had previously promised citizens that it was only a temporary issue, but the crisis has persisted. Last week, the United States diplomatic office in Bamako announced that non-essential diplomatic staff and their relatives would leave Mali amid the worsening fuel shortage and growing security concerns. It said that the energy interruptions had impacted the power distribution and had the “ability to disturb” the broader protection environment in unexpected forms. The West African nation is presently governed by a military junta under the leadership of General Goïta, who took control in a coup in two years ago. The military government had popular support when it came to authority, vowing to deal with the ongoing instability triggered by a independence uprising in the north by Tuareg communities, which was then hijacked by jihadist fighters. The UN peacekeeping mission and France's military had been stationed in previously to combat the growing rebellion. These forces have left since the junta took over, and the military government has employed foreign fighters to address the insecurity. Nonetheless, the jihadist insurgency has persisted and large parts of the northern and eastern zones of the nation remain not under administrative command.