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The landlocked West African country has closed schools and universities across the nation due to a severe petrol shortage triggered by a restriction on petroleum supplies enforced by jihadist fighters.

Top education official declared on state television that all learning centers would stay shut until November 9th, explaining that the transportation of staff and learners had been affected by the blockade.

He stated that the administration were “doing everything possible” to end the emergency so that academic sessions could restart on 10 November.

For several weeks, Mali has been grappling with a fuel shortage, notably in the main city, after armed groups from an jihadist network enforced a restriction by striking transport vehicles on primary roads.

Mali is surrounded by land, so all energy resources are brought in by road from bordering countries such as its western neighbor and Ivory Coast.

Long queues have been snaking around petrol stations in Bamako in the past few weeks, and the city's normally bustling streets have now reportedly fallen quiet.

The ruling military council had in recent days assured the public that it was only a short-term problem, but the emergency has persisted.

Last week, the United States diplomatic office in Bamako stated that non-critical embassy personnel and their families would evacuate Mali amid the worsening energy crisis and increasing safety issues.

It explained that the petroleum supply issues had disrupted the supply of electricity and had the “capacity to affect” the overall security situation in unforeseen manners.

The West African nation is now led by a military junta headed by General Goïta, who took control in a military overthrow in two years ago.

The junta had popular support when it assumed control, promising to tackle the long-running security crisis prompted by a autonomy movement in the northern region by ethnic Tuaregs, which was then taken over by extremist groups.

The United Nations stabilization force and France's military had been sent in 2013 to combat the growing rebellion.

These forces have departed since the new administration came in, and the current administration has hired private military contractors to tackle the violence.

However, the jihadist insurgency has persisted and large parts of the north and east of the nation remain beyond state authority.