By HICGI News Agency – Updated at 1620 EAT on Saturday 11th October 2025

KAMPALA, UGANDA – In a development highlighting shifting regional dynamics, the Moroccan delegation was compelled to sit alongside representatives of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) during the Arab-African Youth Conference in Kampala, Uganda, after unsuccessful attempts to block Sahrawi participation.

The conference — established in 2004 in Khartoum as a platform for youth cooperation and exchange between the Arab and African continents — convened under growing calls for inclusivity and unity among member states.

According to diplomatic sources, the Moroccan delegation reportedly exerted political and financial pressure on organizers and some participating officials in an effort to exclude the Sahrawi Republic from the event. Despite these attempts, Uganda’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed its position that all recognized member states should participate without discrimination or exclusion.

The sources added that Morocco’s maneuvers were countered by firm coordination between the Sahrawi Embassy, the Algerian Embassy, and officials from the Ugandan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as by the solidarity of several African and Arab delegations who opposed exclusionary tactics.

Ultimately, the organizing committee upheld the participation of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic as an official representative and founding member of the African Union — a move seen as a diplomatic victory for the Sahrawi cause and its advocates.

During the conference, tensions reportedly escalated when the Moroccan delegation attempted to physically obstruct the Sahrawi representatives, prompting intervention from other African delegations, led by Algeria’s ambassador to Uganda H.E Amokrane Mourad, who strongly rejected any act of intimidation or disrespect toward an AU member state.

Following the resolution of the dispute, the Sahrawi delegation, headed by Chargé d’Affaires Mohamed Ali Mohamed Daf, engaged in constructive discussions with youth and diplomatic representatives from various countries. These meetings reaffirmed support for the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination and denounced ongoing human rights violations in the occupied territories.

The delegation’s warm reception by participants was seen as a reaffirmation of the legitimacy of the Western Sahara issue and a further step in the Sahrawi Republic’s public diplomacy efforts on the international stage.

At the close of the conference, participants emphasized the importance of strengthening Arab-African youth cooperation on the principles of mutual respect, national sovereignty, and peaceful coexistence — rejecting any form of exclusion or political manipulation in regional and international forums.