The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Friday in a statement that it has been closely monitoring developments in Mali following the announcement that army soldiers had taken control of the country.

The UNHCR is concerned about continued political uncertainty to create "further population movements" inside and beyond Mali's borders, said a statement.

UNHCR is currently revising its contingency plans to expand its capacity to respond to new influxes in surrounding countries, such as Mauritania and Burkina Faso, the statement added.

The statement also revealed that the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, would visit Mauritania over the next days to assess the situation on the ground.

Thousands of people have fled Mali since mid-January, following fighting between a rebel movement and Malian forces in the north of the country.

Inside Mali, displaced people are living in difficult conditions in villages and temporary sites and dependant on the generosity of host communities.