The Alaouite king highlights in his speech the importance of the Nigeria-Morocco gas pipeline and points to its connection with Europe
Nov. 6 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The King of Morocco, Mohamed VI, highlighted this Sunday on the anniversary of the Green March that began the Moroccan occupation of the Spanish Sahara in 1975 that the process of “consolidation” of the “Moroccan character” of the Sahara is in a ” crucial phase.
“This year we celebrate the 47th anniversary of the Green March at a time when the process of consolidating Moroccanity in the Sahara has entered a crucial phase,” Mohamed VI said in his speech, published by the official Moroccan news agency , MAP.
The Alaouite monarch has highlighted the “glorious epic” that led to the “liberation” of the “plundered lands”. “From now on, the Marches that we carry out without respite are intended to ensure the Moroccan citizen the conditions of a dignified life, particularly in these territories that we love so much,” he assured.
In this sense, he has pointed to a vision “that combines political and diplomatic action with the promotion of the socioeconomic and human development of the region” and has given as an example of this the Development Program for the Southern Provinces -the official name of the former Spanish Sahara– announced in 2015.
Mohamed VI recalled that it is a program financed with 77,000 million dirhams (more than 7,000 million euros) “designed to initiate a true economic and social dynamic in the region”. “Its vocation is to stimulate, in these territories, the creation of jobs, ensure a climate conducive to investment and provide them with the infrastructure and equipment they need”, he pointed out.
The monarch has highlighted that seven years after the launch of this program, a commitment rate of close to 80 percent of the allocated budget has been achieved. “We are delighted with the positive results achieved,” he stressed.
“Loyalty to the spirit and the eternal oath of the Green March demands that all Moroccans remain mobilized and vigilant to defend the national unity of their country, promote its full development and strengthen its adherence to its African depth”, he stressed.
Mohamed VI dedicated an important part of the speech to the agreement signed in 2016 with Nigeria for the construction of a gas pipeline, highlighting “the progress” of it.
“The memorandum of understanding recently signed in Rabat with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and in Nouakchott with Mauritania and Senegal constitute a fundamental milestone in the implementation process of said project”, he stressed. “We want it to be a strategic project at the service of the entire West African region, whose population exceeds 440 million inhabitants”, she recalled.
“Here is a project for peace, African economic integration and shared development; a project for present and future generations” and that “links Africa with Europe”.
FORMER SPANISH COLONY
The former Spanish colony of Western Sahara was occupied by Morocco in 1975 in the Green March after a transfer agreement signed with Madrid and despite the resistance of the Polisario Front, which proclaimed the independence of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).
The 1991 ceasefire was signed by Morocco and the Polisario with a view to holding a self-determination referendum, but differences over the preparation of the census and the inclusion or not of Moroccan settlers have so far prevented it from being called.
In addition, the Polisario declared the 1992 ceasefire broken after the eviction of Saharawi activists from the Guerguerat border crossing with Mauritania by Moroccan military forces in November 2020. Rabat considers the area between the post and the border with Mauritania as ‘land nobody’s’, while the Polisario Front considers it its own territory.
The latest setback for the Saharawi independence fighters has been the Spanish government’s support for the Moroccan autonomy plan made public on March 18 in a letter addressed to the Alaouite king, Mohamed VI, a change of position described as treason by the Polisario Front, which recalls that Spain is still ‘de iure’ the administering power of Western Sahara.
