Universities are ‘spaces of surveillance, self-censorship’

A Malian academic, who says he was hounded out of his university job last month following his release from the country’s Kéniéroba Central Prison on 27 March, has spoken out about pervasive censorship in the country’s higher education institutions.

Consequently, says Professor Étienne Fakaba Sissoko, some scholars are simply halting efforts to publish, academic standards are falling and scientific isolation is growing due to limited access to international databases and the existence of only a few local journals.

An economist and author, Sissoko, who was previously working at the University of Social Sciences and Management of Bamako’s faculty of economic sciences and management, faced several charges following the release of his 2023 book, Propagande, Agitation, Harcèlement: La communication gouvernementale pendant la transition au Mali, which, if translated, means Propaganda, Agitation, Harassment: Government Communication During Mali’s Transition deemed critical of his country’s military regime.

Mali’s military leader, General Assimi Goïta, who overthrew the government of then-president Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta in August 2020 following anti-government protests, but was forced to hand over power by the regional grouping, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), staged another coup in May 2021, and has since launched attacks on freedom of speech and academic freedoms to consolidate his rule.

According to the 2025 Freedom in the World report published by Freedom House, an American non-profit organisation, reports of censorship, self-censorship, and threats against journalists that have risen significantly since the army seized power in Mali.

Shortly after his release from prison and resuming his job, Sissoko went into hiding and has subsequently left Mali. The academic believes that “Malian universities will outlast dictatorships – if they keep their lights burning.”

University World News spoke to Sissoko via e-mail about the state of higher education in Mali.

UWN: Where did you study?

EFS: My academic background lies at the intersection of economics, communication, and social sciences. I hold a PhD in international economics, a masters degree in journalism and communication from the Catholic University of West Africa, and a diploma in Christian-Muslim dialogue from the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies in Rome.

My academic publications focus on macroeconomic policy, war economies, political communication, and authoritarian regimes. I am also the founding director of the Centre for Research and Political, Economic and Social Analysis in Bamako.

UWN: When did you start teaching at university level?

EFS: I began my teaching career in 2011 at the private Sup Management Mali, where I taught general economics, international economics, and macroeconomic policy. The official name is École Supérieure de Management de Commerce et d’Informatique. It is a subsidiary of Sup Management Morocco. It was my first academic position before joining the public university system.

In 2018, I passed the national entrance exam for higher education in Mali as a macroeconomist and was assigned to the faculty of economics and management at the University of Social Sciences and Management of Bamako, one of the institutions created after the break-up of the former University of Bamako.

UWN: Were you able to return to teaching after your release from prison?

EFS: I resumed teaching just a week after my release at the end of March 2025. However, it was short-lived. After I announced the publication of a series of books written in prison – including Le Trône des illusions (translated as “The Throne of Illusions”) – the surveillance, threats and pressure resumed in a more systematic and aggressive manner. I was forced to suspend my teaching.

Today, for security reasons, I no longer reside permanently in Mali. I travel frequently while continuing to monitor the situation, write, and mobilise democratic forces from abroad.

My family has also been targeted and threatened, which accelerated my departure. Staying would have meant risking abduction or a politically motivated trial. Leaving became a condition for survival – and for continuing to speak out.

UWN: Did your arrest come as a surprise?

EFS: It was not a surprise. Since the release of Propaganda, Agitation, Harassment in early 2023, I knew I had become a marked man. The current Malian regime tolerates no criticism – especially from well-known scholars.

My analysis showed how military transition authorities manipulate public opinion through state media, weaponised social networks, and the systematic intimidation of journalists and academics.

But it’s important to note: this was not my first arrest. In January 2022, I had already been imprisoned for six months for comments I made on RFI (Radio France International) and France 24 regarding ECOWAS sanctions against the junta’s electoral delays. I was later released without trial or judgment. They even attempted to discredit me publicly. Since then, I’ve been subject to ongoing political harassment.

In March 2024, I was arrested again at my home – shortly after the publication of Propaganda, Agitation, Harassment: Government Communication under the Military Transition in Mali. I was charged with “undermining the credit of the state”, “spreading false information”, and “insulting the authorities”. I was sentenced to two years in prison, one of which was to be served. It was the first time in Mali’s history that a university professor was sentenced to prison for a scholarly book.

UWN: What is the state of higher education in Mali, and how has it been affected by military rule?

EFS: Malian higher education is in a state of advanced decay. It suffers from:

• Overcrowding: 100,000 students for fewer than 2,000 university lecturers. Lecture halls are overflowing, tutorials are unmanageable. Although new universities have been announced in the regions, most remain non-operational.

• Infrastructure deficit: Laboratories are almost nonexistent; libraries and IT equipment are outdated or unusable.

• Public universities are severely underfunded. The state prioritises defence spending. No structural reforms have been initiated by the junta.

• Academic instability: Endless strikes, truncated academic years, and a salary reform promised since 2017 has yet to be implemented.

• Brain drain: Many professors are leaving, or have simply stopped publishing.

Worse still, fear now suffocates academic research. Some colleagues refuse to publish with me or even comment on a paper if it criticises the transition. Collective projects have been abandoned out of fear of retaliation. The university has become a space of surveillance and self-censorship.

UWN: How does academic freedom today compare to that under previous civilian governments?

EFS: There is no comparison. Before 2020 – even under imperfect democratic regimes – no scholar was ever imprisoned for their writing. Today, it’s a reality. I was sentenced to prison for academic work – originally my masters thesis – which I intended to develop into a doctoral dissertation.

Following my arrest in 2024, the Catholic university where I planned to enrol for my PhD withdrew my admission, presumably out of fear of state reprisals. I am already a professor of economics, but I was seeking to enrol in a second PhD programme in Information and Communication Sciences, following my earlier masters degree in journalism and communication.

I had obtained a pre-admission certificate for the 2024 academic year, but my application was ultimately rejected, without any clear explanation. This academic opportunity was, therefore, blocked this year, despite the initial agreement from the university.

My colleagues support me privately, but admit they can no longer sign collective papers with me. A climate of fear now pervades campuses, with constantly shifting red lines.

Some conferences are banned or ‘rebranded’ to avoid sensitive topics such as the transition, Wagner (the Russian mercenary group believed to be propping up the regime), corruption, and democracy. Scholars avoid commenting on political developments. Campus surveillance has increased. Some publications have been censored or refused by local publishers.

UWN: What are working conditions like for higher education faculty?

EFS: University professors in Mali work under precarious conditions:

There is low pay and research bonuses have not been paid since 2017. In addition, there are insufficient facilities. Most faculty lack private offices, the internet is unreliable, and libraries are poorly stocked.

Outdated equipment is another problem. Few projectors, personal laptops are required, software is often unavailable. There is also a lot of professional stress. Overtime is unpaid, and semesters must be completed, despite constant strikes.

Research funding is virtually non-existent. Academics fund their own work.

UWN: Are teachers’ and students’ unions free to organise and strike?

EFS: Teachers’ unions are still legally recognised but operate under surveillance. They can still call for strikes – as they did in 2025 to demand unpaid research bonuses – but avoid political criticism. The authorities either ignore them or apply subtle intimidation.

During the most recent strike, union leaders were summoned, not by the ministry of labour, but by state security – an ominous sign.

As for students, the historic Association of Malian Pupils and Students was dissolved by government decree in March 2024, officially due to internal violence. In truth, it was a political move to neutralise any student mobilisation against the military regime. Since then, there has been no nationally recognised student body.

UWN: How have broken ties with other countries affected higher education in Mali?

EFS: The consequences are severe:

• Suspension of university cooperation with France and the European Union;

• Cancellation of Campus France scholarships, Erasmus exchanges, and closure of French institutes.

• Visa denials for academic conferences, including for myself in 2023-24.

• Frozen partnerships with African and European universities.

• Termination of francophone academic programmes in several fields.

UWN: What role should universities play in national transformation?

EFS: Universities must return to their role as critical consciences of the nation. As in 1991, when students and professors helped topple a dictatorship, we must illuminate public debate, resist censorship, produce emancipatory knowledge, support institutional reform, and train free and responsible citizens.

I fully embrace this mission, even in exile. From my prison cell, I continued to write, reflect, and publish. Malian universities will outlast dictatorships – if they keep their lights burning.