Proexca commits to investment in the Sahara, upsetting the Polisario Front
Proexca, a public company attached to the Presidency of the Canary Islands Government dedicated to the internationalisation of companies in the Canary Islands, is promoting investment in Western Sahara.
Specifically, it encourages investment in the Atlantic Port of Dakhla and, to this end, has organised a trade mission with the Canary Islands Federation of Port Companies (Fedeport) from 29 November to 2 December under the slogan ‘Port Dakhla 2025’.
The challenge is to support Canary Islands companies in investing in a prosperous territory such as Western Sahara, which is monitored by Morocco, which proposes its de facto incorporation as another autonomous region of the nation.
In 2007, Morocco proposed a plan for autonomy for Western Sahara with the aim of incorporating the territory into the Moroccan state, granting the Sahrawis a large degree of self-government and leaving international and defence policy in the hands of the state. All this would be done in accordance with the resolutions of the United Nations.
This proposal was endorsed by more than 100 countries, which considered it the most serious, credible and realistic option for resolving the Sahrawi dispute, which has been ongoing for five decades since the end of Spanish colonial rule. Furthermore, at the end of October, the UN Security Council, on the initiative of the United States, approved a resolution, with the favourable vote of the members and the abstention of China and Russia, to consider the Moroccan proposal as the most solid basis for reaching an agreement between the parties involved in the dispute over the territorial sovereignty of Western Sahara, namely Morocco, on the one hand, and the Polisario Front and the so-called Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) on the other.
The pro-independence Polisario Front advocates holding a referendum on independence for the Sahrawi people, which has been debated at the UN for decades, although no consensus has been reached on the issue, and currently has little international support, including that of Algeria, Morocco's great political rival in the Maghreb, with which it broke off relations in August 2021 after accusing the Moroccan kingdom of ‘hostile acts’ against the Algerian nation. The situation remains deadlocked despite the Moroccan king, Mohammed VI, repeatedly extending an olive branch in an attempt to restore good diplomatic relations.
Algeria and the Polisario Front are more isolated internationally with regard to the Sahrawi territorial issue, as Morocco has gained considerable international support for its proposal to integrate Western Sahara as another autonomous region of the Moroccan kingdom.
Morocco considers Western Sahara to be part of its southern provinces and seeks to develop the area to its full potential with economic initiatives that promote territorial development. In this vein, investment is encouraged in an area that has great economic, commercial and industrial potential.
Initiatives such as those proposed by Proexca and Fedeport play an important role here, which may upset the sector opposed to Morocco on the Sahrawi question, as represented by the Polisario Front and the SADR.
Canary Islands business mission from the port sector to Dakhla
The business mission organised by Proexca and Fedeport offers Canary Islands companies strategic opportunities to position themselves in the development of the future Atlantic Port of Dakhla, a €1.3 billion logistics project promoted by Morocco that aims to be a key logistics hub between Africa, Europe and America.
Participating companies will be able to identify investment and collaboration opportunities, establish alliances with strategic players in the maritime-port sector and ensure the expansion of their business in a rapidly developing Moroccan market, taking advantage of the connection between three continents: Europe, Africa and America.
The mission is designed for Canary Islands companies in the port and maritime sector and related industries, focused on capitalising on the opportunities offered by the future Atlantic Port of Dakhla.
As noted by Proexca, the development of Dakhla as a platform for regional integration and a hub for port development generates opportunities in:
- Auxiliary services: repairs, maintenance, ship supply and specialised training.
- Logistics and transport: cargo management, distribution and international connectivity services.
- Port technology: digitisation, automation and smart port management.
- Renewable energy and sustainability: energy solutions for efficient and sustainable ports.
- Blue economy: responsible fishing, aquaculture and maritime tourism.
- Circular economy: waste management, recycling and sustainable solutions adapted to the local context.