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The landlocked West African country has closed educational facilities and universities countrywide due to a acute petrol shortage caused by a embargo on energy resources implemented by Islamist insurgents.

The Education Minister stated on state television that all learning centers would remain closed until November 9th, explaining that the transportation of staff and pupils had been disrupted by the imposed limitations.

He stated that the government officials were “working tirelessly” to end the crisis so that educational activities could continue on 10 November.

For several weeks, Mali has been grappling with a energy deficit, particularly in the administrative center, after armed groups from an al-Qaeda-linked organization imposed a embargo by attacking transport vehicles on major highways.

Mali is landlocked, so all energy resources are brought in by land routes from neighboring states such as its western neighbor and Ivory Coast.

Extended lines have been snaking around fuel outlets in the capital in recent weeks, and the city's normally bustling streets have now apparently become deserted.

The military government had earlier this month reassured the public that it was only a passing concern, but the situation has endured.

In the past few days, the United States diplomatic office in Bamako stated that non-critical embassy personnel and their dependents would depart Mali amid the worsening petrol scarcity and growing security concerns.

It noted that the energy interruptions had impacted the energy availability and had the “ability to disturb” the overall security situation in unforeseen manners.

Mali is now led by a military junta led by General Goïta, who took control in a coup in 2021.

The military government had public backing when it came to authority, promising to deal with the ongoing instability prompted by a independence uprising in the northern region by the Tuareg population, which was then co-opted by extremist groups.

The international UN troops and France's military had been stationed in 2013 to address the growing rebellion.

These forces have withdrawn since the military assumed power, and the military government has employed Russian mercenaries to combat the insecurity.

Nevertheless, the jihadist insurgency has continued and significant areas of the northern and eastern territories of the nation remain outside government control.