Sahara: Sierra Leone Calls for Resumption of Round Table Discussions, Reaffirms Support for Autonomy Plan

Sierra Leone called, in New York, for the resumption of the roundtable process on the issue of the Moroccan Sahara, while reiterating its support for the autonomy initiative presented by the Kingdom to end this regional dispute. “My delegation calls for the resumption of the roundtable process in the same format and with the same participants,” namely Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and the “polisario”, and this in accordance with Security Council resolution 2602, said the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sierra Leone, Mamadi Kamara, before the members of the 4th Committee of the UN General Assembly. She also expressed her country’s support for the ongoing political process conducted under the exclusive auspices of the United Nations and the efforts of the UN Secretary-General and his Personal Envoy for the Moroccan Sahara, aimed at achieving a lasting and mutually acceptable solution to this regional dispute, in accordance with the relevant Security Council resolutions adopted since 2007. In this context, the Sierra Leonean diplomat welcomed the Moroccan autonomy initiative in the sense that it is a basis for compromise for a lasting solution to the issue of the Moroccan Sahara. Highlighting the dynamics of socio-economic development underway in the southern provinces through the new development model launched in 2015, the deputy minister welcomed the opening of consulates general in the cities of Laayoune and Dakhla, which help strengthen socio-economic opportunities in the Moroccan Sahara region.