THE military-led governments of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have formally endorsed Morocco’s initiative to provide them access to global trade through its Atlantic ports, according to Morocco’s state news agency, as reported by Reuters.
The foreign ministers of the three Sahel states expressed their support during talks with Morocco’s King Mohammed VI in Rabat on Monday. The meeting underscores a significant geopolitical shift following the countries’ withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) last year.
Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, all governed by juntas following recent coups, have instead banded together under the Confederation of Sahel States (AES), seeking to forge new alliances as they face mounting isolation from Western and regional partners.
Diversifying trade as ECOWAS ties weaken
Morocco announced the Atlantic ports initiative in November 2023, offering landlocked Sahel nations an alternative gateway to international trade after ECOWAS imposed trade sanctions on the trio in response to their military takeovers.
Speaking to state media, Mali’s foreign minister Abdoulaye Diop described the Moroccan initiative as crucial for ‘diversifying our access to the sea’, highlighting the strategic importance of the Atlantic connection for the Sahel economies.
Morocco’s news agency said the Rabat meeting was part of ‘the strong and longstanding relations of the Kingdom with the three brotherly countries of the Alliance of Sahel States’.
The Atlantic port access could prove vital for the AES members, whose economies have been severely strained by sanctions, security challenges, and their expulsion of French and Western military forces.
Regional rivalries heat up
The AES’s warming ties with Morocco come as relations between the Sahel states and Algeria deteriorate. Algeria, a longstanding regional rival of Morocco, has severed diplomatic ties with Rabat and supports the Polisario Front, which seeks independence for Western Sahara—a territory Morocco claims as its own.
Morocco is currently investing heavily in its Atlantic infrastructure, including the construction of a new $1 billion port in Western Sahara. The project is designed to strengthen Rabat’s economic and strategic reach, especially with its growing influence among West African countries.
The Sahel states’ alignment with Morocco may further strain regional dynamics, deepening tensions with Algeria, which has traditionally maintained stronger ties with several West African countries.
Morocco’s rising diplomatic clout
The move also highlights Morocco’s rising role as a diplomatic broker in the region. In December, Rabat mediated the release of four French nationals detained in Burkina Faso, shortly after Paris recognised Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara.
With Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger increasingly distancing themselves from Western powers and turning towards Russia for military support, Morocco’s Atlantic trade offer gives the AES bloc a critical economic lifeline and a potential boost to their regional autonomy.
As geopolitical realignments continue across West Africa, Morocco’s strategic initiatives are likely to shape new political and economic corridors—redrawing alliances in a region in flux.
