Morocco asks to join West African bloc

It wants a seat at the region’s political table, analyst says

JOHANNESBURG // Morocco is applying to join the Economic Community of West African States, the bloc confirmed yesterday.

Morocco’s application will be considered at the next summit of 15 member states in July, said Ecowas chairman Marcel de Souza.

In January, Morocco rejoined the African Union, with 39 nations voting in its favour.

The 54- nation body in 1984 recognised Western Sahara as the independent Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. In response, Morocco, which claims Western Sahara as its southern provinces, left the union. Western Sahara remains a member of the African Union.

For decades, a United Nations resolution has called for a referendum to decide its fate. Oil companies have abandoned exploration there, and European fishing companies have withdrawn fleets because of the tensions.

Last December, the European Union’s court of justice ruled that Morocco must exclude products from Western Sahara from its exports to member states.

It would be very surprising if Morocco’s application to Ecowas was accepted, said Liesl Louw- Vaudran, an analyst at the Institute for Security Studies in South Africa.

Morocco is not geographically part of West Africa and culturally fits with Arab nations very different from those of sub-Saharan Africa.

Morocco’s attempt to join the West African bloc was not to pursue trade and investment, said Ms Louw-Vaudran.

The country “wants to sit at the political table and just realised it doesn’t want to be the black sheep of the African continent anymore”, she said. Morocco’s King Mohammed VI has been travelling around Africa in recent months signing multibillion-dollar deals with countries including Ghana and Nigeria.

Last month, he visited Guinea, whose president chairs the West African bloc.

Last week, the king spoke by telephone to Nigeria’s ailing president Muhammadu Buhari.