THE JIHAD OF SCARCITY: Economic strangulation as a strategy of domination in Mali

LE DJIHAD DE LA RARETE: L’asphyxie économique comme stratégie de domination au Mali

Etienne Sissoko ()
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Etienne Sissoko: CRAPES MALI - Centre de Recherche et d'Analyses Politiques, Economiques et Sociales du Mali, Faculté des Sciences économiques et de Gestion - USSGB - Université des sciences sociales et de gestion de Bamako, USSGB - Université des sciences sociales et de gestion de Bamako

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Abstract: This article analyses the economic strangulation strategy implemented by JNIM in Mali between July and November 2025. By blocking fuel flows and disrupting key road corridors, the jihadist group transformed the country's energy dependence into an instrument of political domination. Based on an integrated qualitative methodology, the analysis shows that the blockade is not a rupture but a revelation: it highlights the coercive delegation of sovereign functions to armed actors capable of controlling vital resources. The state remains visible but is functionally disabled, while society adapts under constraint and the economy fragments into survival circuits. The findings emphasize that economic sovereignty has become a scarce resource, administered through fear, dependency, and the control of flows. The study calls for a rethinking of security in the Sahel through the concept of circulatory security, centered on regional governance of vital flows.

Keywords: Djihad économique; H56; Silent collapse Economic jihad AES Scarcity Sahel. JEL Codes: F52 O55 H56 P16 O17 Q34; Silent collapse Economic jihad AES Scarcity Sahel. JEL Codes: F52 O55 H56 P16 O17 Q34 Effondrement silencieux Djihad économique Rareté AES : Sahel. JEL Codes -F52 O55 H56 P16 O17 Q34; Silent collapse; Economic jihad; AES; Scarcity; Sahel. JEL Codes: F52; O55; P16; O17; Q34 Effondrement silencieux; Rareté; AES : Sahel. JEL Codes -F52; Q34 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-12-04
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ene
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Published in 2025, ⟨10.5281/zenodo.17813332⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05562279

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17813332

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