Dakhla: Participants at the 2nd Policy Conference of the Coalition for Sahara Autonomy (AUSACO), held Tuesday in Dakhla, called for a ‘revisited UN approach’ to the Moroccan Sahara issue, in response to evolving geopolitical dynamics and new facts on the ground.

According to Agence Marocaine De Presse, the conference, themed ‘The New Realities of the Moroccan Sahara: Towards a Revisited UN Approach in a Changing Geopolitical Context,’ gathered experts, policymakers, and international actors. They emphasized the necessity for a more pragmatic and realistic UN engagement, pointing to Morocco’s economic and social progress in the southern provinces and increasing global support for the autonomy initiative as reasons for a policy reevaluation.

AUSACO representative Amal Abed Alhaleem Ahmed Aljbour highlighted the conference as a significant step in strengthening support for Morocco’s autonomy plan. She noted the progress since the conference’s first edition in 2024, citing increased momentum at the United Nations and broader international backing for Morocco’s proposal.

Christophe Boutin, Associate Professor of Public Law at the University of Caen, France, stressed that the UN must adapt to recent geopolitical shifts, citing support from the United States and France. Italian MP Ouidad Bakkali, a member of the Parliamentary Intergroup in Support of the Autonomy Plan, emphasized the growing international alignment behind Morocco’s initiative, urging a unified European stance to resolve the conflict.

Souleymane Satigui Sidib©, President of the Sahel Initiative for Research and Analysis for Conflict Transformation (TIRAC-SAHEL), called for an end to the debate, urging countries supporting Morocco to work together for a definitive resolution.

The conference includes thematic panels on the development model of Morocco’s southern provinces, autonomous governance, and a renewed UN framework for addressing the regional dispute. Participants are also scheduled to visit significant infrastructure projects, including the Dakhla Atlantic Port, a key component of Morocco’s new development model for the southern provinces aimed at enhancing the region’s economic competitiveness.

AUSACO, an independent organization with over 3,000 members worldwide, consists of politicians, parliamentarians, diplomats, academics, journalists, lawyers, and civil society figures. The coalition advocates for the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative as the sole viable and lasting solution to the Sahara conflict across various platforms.