Mali: 2,444 schools closed at the start of the school year, 733,200 children deprived of classes

The Malian school year began on Thursday, October 1, 2026, with 2,444 schools closed out of 11,860, representing more than one in five schools, depriving 733,200 children of a classroom, according to figures from the Ministry of National Education reported by RFI.

The north and center cut off from school

The map of closures overlaps with that of insecurity. In the Kidal and Tessalit areas, 84% of schools did not open. In Ménaka, 52% of establishments are declared non-functional. In the center of the country, the Tenenkou circle reached 68% closures, Douentza 52%, and Bandiagara 38%, again according to data cited by RFI.

A curve that keeps rising

The phenomenon is worsening year by year: 1,300 schools closed in 2020, about 1,800 in 2024, and 2,444 today. The number has almost doubled in six years. The causes noted include closures imposed by jihadist groups, the looting and destruction of school buildings, the fear that drives teachers not to report to their posts, and the occupation of classrooms by displaced families.

An assessment by the Education Cluster, which brings together the Ministry of National Education, UNICEF, and Save the Children, published on June 24, 2026, put forward the same total of 2,444 closed schools and estimated the number of affected teachers at approximately 14,700. In this count, the Ségou region led with 506 closed establishments, ahead of Bandiagara, Timbuktu, Mopti, and Ménaka. The Koutiala circle was the least affected, with 32 schools.

Reopenings remain possible

The same report noted the reopening of twelve schools in Sikasso, Ségou, Mopti, and the Nara area: the trend is therefore not totally irreversible where security is being restored. Floods are also disrupting school activities in certain localities.

The transitional authorities have declared the 2026-2027 year the "Year of Education and Culture." General Assimi Goïta has promised to "further strengthen" the fight against insecurity and terrorist groups. Africanews notes, however, that the security situation remains the main obstacle to the reopening of schools in the affected areas.

Behind the percentages lies the right to education for an entire Sahelian generation. A child who loses several years of schooling almost never makes them up, and the hardest-hit areas are also the poorest and most isolated. The coming weeks will tell if the commitments made for this "Year of Education" translate into measurable reopenings on the ground.