During an international seminar in New York, Morocco’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Omar Hilale, alongside global experts, examined autonomy models from Rapa Nui, French Polynesia, Åland Islands, and the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region in Tajikistan. The discussion took place within the framework of UN Security Council Resolution 2797.
Morocco’s autonomy proposal gains global traction
On July 1, 2026, Morocco’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations hosted an international seminar in New York, focusing on implementation guarantees for territorial autonomy agreements. The event brought together academics and experts from diverse autonomy experiences worldwide.
In his opening remarks, Ambassador Omar Hilale described the timing as “exceptional,” citing recent diplomatic breakthroughs on the Western Sahara issue, particularly the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2797 in October 2025. He emphasized that the resolution marked a “historic turning point” by unequivocally endorsing Morocco’s autonomy plan under Moroccan sovereignty as the sole foundation for a mutually acceptable political solution.
With four months remaining before the next UN Security Council review, Hilale highlighted a growing international momentum, with over 130 UN member states—including three permanent Security Council members (the United States, France, and the United Kingdom)—supporting the autonomy initiative. He linked this diplomatic momentum to tangible progress in Morocco’s southern provinces, citing infrastructure development, renewable energy projects, higher education expansion, healthcare improvements, foreign investments, a data center project in Dakhla, and plans for a deep-water port along the Atlantic coast.
The envoy stressed that the autonomy plan is not merely a political slogan but a concrete governance project backed by constitutional, institutional, and democratic safeguards. The seminar’s central theme—“In a negotiated autonomy, there is no value without guarantees”—underscored the plan’s emphasis on self-governance for the Sahara’s populations through legislative, executive, and judicial bodies with devolved powers.
Comparative autonomy models under scrutiny
The seminar, moderated by Marc Finaud, Senior Advisor at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, clarified that the academic exercise aimed to complement—not replace—UN-led negotiations. Finaud noted that Morocco’s initiative, submitted to the UN Security Council on April 11, 2007, was being examined through international comparisons.
Key aspects explored included local population participation, referendum consultations, the principle of subsidiarity, representation in national institutions, constitutional human rights guarantees, and mechanisms for reintegration and transition. Diego Muñoz, a researcher presenting the case of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) in Chile, described an “unfinished” autonomy process with decades of unresolved discussions. He contrasted its legal and historical context with Western Sahara’s UN-led framework, emphasizing the importance of local consultation—a principle Morocco’s initiative incorporates through representation, population involvement, and institutional safeguards.
Sémir Al Wardi, a political science professor at the University of French Polynesia, distinguished between administrative and political autonomy. While French Polynesia operates under administrative autonomy, New Caledonia enjoys legislative powers. Al Wardi argued that Morocco’s plan is more generous than France’s model, as it grants legislative authority to the Sahara region, akin to autonomy frameworks in Spain or the United Kingdom. He also underscored the critical role of financial resources, asserting that true autonomy requires sufficient fiscal means to exercise devolved competencies.
Heikki Mattila, a professor at Geneva’s School for International Training, presented the Åland Islands case—a Swedish-speaking autonomous region in Finland. Its autonomy, born from a post-independence crisis and later codified by the League of Nations, includes protections for the Swedish language, restrictions on land acquisition by non-residents, fiscal autonomy, local representation, and demilitarization. Mattila highlighted the quasi-constitutional protection of Åland’s autonomy laws, which can only be amended through a reinforced procedure involving the region. He stressed the need for clear competency sharing and flexible evolution mechanisms, including institutional oversight by Finland’s Supreme Court.
Beyond legal text: Ensuring autonomy works in practice
Dagikhudo Dagiev, a senior researcher at the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London, examined the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region in Tajikistan. Despite constitutional recognition, Dagiev noted that its autonomy remains largely theoretical due to state centralization, direct central appointments of regional leaders, and a lack of exclusive competencies. This case illustrated the risks of autonomy existing only on paper, contrasting it with Morocco’s plan, which includes constitutional anchoring, fiscal resources, dispute resolution mechanisms, protection against unilateral revocation, and potential international support for implementation.
Marc Finaud concluded by identifying shared lessons from the examined models: constitutional enshrinement of autonomy, international agreements, precise competency definitions, revenue generation, dispute resolution frameworks, and safeguards against unilateral changes. In Morocco’s case, these elements reinforce the credibility of a sustainable autonomy that adapts to the evolving needs of the local population.