The Diploma of Basic Studies tests began this Monday, June 5 in Mali, particularly in Kidal, in the north of the country. The candidates are taking the exams for the first time since the start of the security crisis in 2012.
They come from Tessalit and Kidal. “The subject wasn’t hard, it went well. I did my best”, said Alazma Wallet Amoumane, a candidate of Kidal, after the essay test.
In the only examination center in the region, the academic supervisor ensures that everything is going well. “We have 72 candidates among whom there are 16 regular candidates and 56 non-regular candidates including 30 girls. There is no major difficulty, we are on time. Everything is going well. Security is assured by the CSMAK (Security Coordination of the Azawad Movements in Kidal, editor’s note). The National Center for Examinations has put at the disposal of the academy everything necessary to organize this examination”, said Ibrahim Ag, director of the Kidal Education Academy.
In Mali, more than 500 schools are closed in areas affected by insecurity, according to a report released by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs last April.