The International Rescue Committee (IRC) warned on Monday that families in Mali are struggling to access the food, healthcare, water and basic services they need to survive one month into a major escalation in armed conflict. According to the humanitarian organization, needs are rising rapidly across the Central Sahel country, where 5.1 million people were already in need of assistance prior to the latest surge in violence.
On April 25, the non-state armed groups Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) and the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) carried out coordinated attacks on Bamako and the towns of Kati, Mopti, Sévaré, Gao, and Kidal. The assaults targeted military barracks as well as the residences of prominent junta officials. Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara, a key figure in the military junta, was killed along with several members of his family during an attack in Kati.
Following these attacks, security has further deteriorated in both urban centers and rural areas. Since April 28, the main roads leading to Bamako have been blocked after JNIM announced a siege of the Malian capital. The armed group has actively targeted transport infrastructure by attacking civilian convoys, including fuel tankers, minibuses and cargo trucks belonging to private companies.
In early May, militants belonging to the JNIM group also attacked the villages of Kori Kori and Gomassagou in central Mali. According to regional authorities and local sources, these attacks on the villages caused severe loss of life and property, leaving at least 40 people dead and several others missing.
While the final death toll from the attacks remains unclear, aid agencies have reported significant damage to civilian infrastructure. Humanitarian organizations and human rights groups have also expressed concerns about the ongoing risk of human rights violations against civilians in the Gao, Kidal, MĂ©naka and Timbuktu regions, arising from the presence of armed groups.
Security incidents and blockades are severely disrupting trade flows. As a landlocked country, Mali relies heavily on imports from coastal neighbors such as Senegal and the Ivory Coast. Aid agencies have expressed deep concerns over fuel shortages and the presence of armed groups along major transport routes, which complicates the movement of people and the supply of essential staple foods.
Rising transportation costs and disruption to supply chains are reducing the availability of essential goods, including staple foods, medicines, fuel and farming supplies. At the same time, fuel shortages and insecurity are disrupting the delivery of medical supplies to hard-to-reach areas, limiting humanitarian access to vulnerable communities.
On Monday, the IRC warned that, without urgent funding, the most vulnerable communities would be left without support.
"The impact of this violence is rippling far beyond the front lines," said Matias Meier, IRC Country Director in Mali.
“Our teams are doing everything possible to keep critical services running, but urgent and sustained funding is needed now.”
He added that needs were rising fast, and that humanitarian organizations were struggling to keep pace.
“Without additional support, the most vulnerable communities will be cut off from the aid they need to survive,” Meier said.
According to the IRC, it is women and children who are facing the greatest risks from this fallout. In parts of central Mali, including the locality of Youwarou in the Mopti region, economic and security pressures are making it increasingly difficult for families to meet their daily needs.
Across Mali, more than one million children are projected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), and reduced humanitarian access is delaying the provision of vital nutritional support to children and pregnant women. Limited mobility is also increasing protection risks for women and girls, particularly in isolated communities.
As violence escalates, families who are already struggling with hunger and displacement are being pushed to the brink. Meanwhile, mobile health clinics are finding it increasingly difficult to reach remote communities.
Mali has been named by the IRC as one of the countries at greatest risk of further humanitarian deterioration this year. At the same time, the crisis in Mali remains one of the world's most underreported crises, and operating there is one of the world's most challenging tasks.
The IRC is calling for urgent and sustained humanitarian attention, as well as flexible funding, to ensure that families in Mali do not lose access to the support they need to survive.
“Continued donor support is critical to keep health teams moving, ensure children can receive nutrition treatment, help women and girls access protection services, and preserve essential assistance for families already living under immense pressure,” the IRC said.
Before the outbreak of this latest crisis, some 1.5 million people already faced acute food insecurity, and aid operations were confronting challenges arising from insecurity, fuel shortages, and disease outbreaks.
The overall humanitarian response remains critically underfunded. The United Nations' Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP), which requires US$578 million, has only received $92 million to date — just 16 percent of the required amount.