Morocco is studying several international autonomy systems, including Spain’s, as it prepares to update its 2007 plan for the Sahara region, the Spanish newspaper El País reported.
The newspaper said Rabat accelerated its review after the UN Security Council’s latest resolution described autonomy as the “most viable” solution to the conflict. Citing diplomatic sources in the Moroccan capital, the report said Spain’s model of autonomous communities, particularly Catalonia, is receiving “preferential attention.”
Other systems under consideration reportedly include France’s overseas territories and the arrangements in Scotland and Northern Ireland. El País noted that Morocco remains a highly centralized state, even after adopting its “advanced regionalization” framework more than a decade ago.
According to the report, Morocco’s existing autonomy proposal grants limited administrative authority to local institutions, while the central government retains control over security, fisheries, mining and other strategic sectors. Under the constitution, the king also holds exclusive authority over defense, foreign policy and religious affairs.
Autonomous powers outlined in the plan are confined to areas such as local taxation, infrastructure, transport, education, health, housing, employment, environmental policy, and the creation of a regional police force. The plan also includes protections for Hassaniya culture.
El País said the review comes as some Moroccan analysts warn of a potential contradiction: While the UN considers the autonomy initiative credible and realistic, domestic assessments point to a trend toward recentralization, raising questions about whether the southern provinces would have meaningful self-governance.
The report said this concern prompted the Royal Palace to call political party leaders to urgent meetings days after the UN vote. Senior royal advisers and the ministers of foreign affairs and interior reportedly attended the consultations.
The newspaper also cited Moroccan analysts who say many citizens misunderstand what autonomy would entail and the trade-offs it could require, a gap they attribute to decades of limited public access to negotiations and policy discussions.
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