Difficulties on several corridors serving Mali are now reshaping the habits of regional transporters. Behind calls to suspend certain trips and the concerns voiced by professional organisations, the disruptions on trade routes are already affecting freight costs, delivery times, and the organisation of logistics chains linking Bamako to its main trading partners.

As a landlocked country, Mali heavily depends on regional road transport. The Dakar-Bamako corridor remains one of the main entry points for Malian imports. In 2024, about 2.6 million tonnes of goods destined for Mali passed through the port of Dakar, highlighting the economic weight of this axis in the country’s supply. Security worries are now translating into concrete decisions by transporters. In Senegal, the Union of Truckers states that at least eleven Senegalese trucks operating on Malian routes have been set on fire in recent weeks. Professional organisations have called on drivers to reduce or suspend certain trips, believing the risks are becoming economically unsustainable.

The episode of 6 May has intensified these concerns. Several commercial convoys were attacked on the axis linking the Mauritanian border to Bamako. According to Moroccan union officials, more than fifteen Moroccan, Senegalese, and Mauritanian trucks were targeted by armed groups. At least six Moroccan heavy goods vehicles were burned.

This incident has also had repercussions in Morocco, where many road transport operators are now showing greater caution regarding trips to Mali. For transport companies, calculations are shifting rapidly: higher insurance, vehicle immobilisation, increased security costs, and longer detours are eating into margins on already long and expensive routes.

The Guinea-Mali corridor is no longer spared from disruptions. Since attacks reported at the end of April on this major trade axis, the movement of goods and people has slowed significantly. Yet this route plays an important role in Mali’s logistics diversification, particularly via the port of Conakry. The difficulties observed on this road limit the alternatives available when other corridors face tensions.

The consequences now extend beyond transport companies alone. On several routes, drivers are extending waiting times before departure, some convoys travel in groups, and families remain without news of relatives who have been on the road for days. For economic operators, each interruption raises storage costs, delays deliveries, and slows trade. When several corridors are disrupted simultaneously, it is the supply of the Malian market, regional logistics timelines, and cross-border economic activity that directly suffer the effects of these difficulties.

Three years after the security reorientation by Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger — marked by a distancing from several Western partners and a closer alignment with Russia — security challenges continue to weigh on the Sahel. The security troubles are now increasingly affecting regional trade and traffic on key commercial axes. The repercussions are felt well beyond the borders of the Alliance of Sahel States: transport organisations in Senegal, Moroccan operators, and Mauritanian hauliers are expressing major concerns about the risks on certain Malian roads.