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The landlocked West African country has suspended schools and colleges across the nation due to a acute petrol shortage caused by a blockade on energy resources imposed by Islamist insurgents.

The Education Minister stated on state television that all academic facilities would remain closed until November 9th, explaining that the travel of employees and students had been affected by the blockade.

He stated that the government officials were “working tirelessly” to resolve the crisis so that classes could resume on November 10th.

For weeks, Mali has been facing a fuel shortage, particularly in the main city, after armed groups from an al-Qaeda affiliate initiated a blockade by striking fuel trucks on major highways.

Mali is surrounded by land, so all fuel supplies are delivered by land routes from neighboring states such as Senegal and the neighboring nation.

Long queues have been winding around fuel outlets in the main city in the past few weeks, and the city's usually crowded streets have now apparently grown silent.

The ruling military council had in recent days assured citizens that it was only a temporary issue, but the crisis has persisted.

Recently, the United States diplomatic office in Bamako announced that non-critical embassy personnel and their families would evacuate the country amid the worsening energy crisis and escalating protection worries.

It noted that the energy interruptions had disrupted the power distribution and had the “ability to disturb” the broader protection environment in unpredictable ways.

The West African nation is now led by a military junta headed by the military leader, who took control in a military overthrow in 2021.

The ruling council had public backing when it took power, committing to address the protracted safety emergency prompted by a separatist rebellion in the northern territories by the Tuareg population, which was then hijacked by extremist groups.

The UN peacekeeping mission and French forces had been sent in 2013 to combat the escalating insurgency.

The international troops have departed since the junta took over, and the military government has hired Russian mercenaries to address the insecurity.

Nonetheless, the militant uprising has persisted and large parts of the northern and eastern zones of the country remain not under administrative command.