Countries with Consulates General in the Moroccan Sahara Celebrate the 51st Anniversary of the Glorious Green March

** DECOUVREZ MAROC

From 2019 to the present day, no fewer than thirty (30) countries have established consulates general in the main cities of the southern provinces, Dakhla (18) and Laâyoune (12). The Union of the Comoros opened the way for this virtuous dynamic on December 18, 2019, followed by Gabon in Laâyoune and the Gambia in Dakhla. Other countries, and by no means the least, are preparing to join the list, notably the USA and France, which have already announced their upcoming arrival. Diplomatic representations from Africa, the Arab world, South America, and other regions have concrete support directly on the ground in the Southern Provinces.

This dynamic, the result of the far-sighted vision of HM King Mohammed VI, is legally grounded in diplomatic norms and practices in accordance with the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. Politically, it demonstrates the willingness of the Kingdom’s partners to align de facto with the process of establishing the Moroccan Sahara as a growth hub and a gateway to Africa. These countries that have opened consulates in Laâyoune and Dakhla are participating in the celebration of the 51st anniversary of the Green March alongside the Kingdom of Morocco. This anniversary coincides with a growing international momentum in favor of the Moroccan autonomy plan and Morocco’s sovereignty over its Sahara.

Starting today, we will progressively talk about these countries already present in the Moroccan Sahara. To open, the honor goes to Gabon for having been one of the rare African countries to participate with a strong delegation in the glorious Green March of November 6, 1975, and which has reaffirmed its commitment to the historical ties of friendship, fraternity, and solidarity uniting it with the Kingdom of Morocco, as read on its Facebook page.

Green March: 51 years later, Gabon renews its support for Morocco and reaffirms a historic friendship.

On the occasion of the 51st anniversary of the Green March, which will be celebrated on November 6, 2026, the Gabonese Republic reaffirms its commitment to the historical ties of friendship, fraternity, and solidarity uniting it with the Kingdom of Morocco.

The Green March, a major turning point in the history of Morocco:

November 6, 1975, remains an emblematic date in the contemporary history of the Kingdom of Morocco. Initiated by the late His Majesty the King as a peaceful march toward the Sahara, then under Spanish administration, in the context of the territory’s decolonization process.

This popular mobilization, known as the « Green March », aimed to demonstrate the Moroccan claim over its Sahara. It came in a context marked by the final months of the Spanish colonial presence and strong diplomatic tensions surrounding the future of the territory.

The event constituted a founding moment in Moroccan national history and remains, fifty-one years later, a symbol of popular mobilization, attachment to sovereignty, and national unity.

Gabon, historic support alongside Morocco

This commemoration carries a special dimension for the Gabonese Republic. Indeed, Gabon’s commitment alongside the Kingdom of Morocco dates back to November 1975, when the country took part in this historic mobilization through a Gabonese delegation. Also, on the same day in Libreville, Gabon, a symbolic support march was organized by the Gabonese authorities under the leadership of the late President Hadj Omar BONGO ONDIMBA.

This participation constitutes a significant testimony of African solidarity and political proximity characterizing relations between Libreville and Rabat for several decades.

Beyond this historical sequence, Gabon has constantly reaffirmed its diplomatic position in favor of Morocco, inscribing its support within a bilateral relationship based on trust, mutual respect, and a convergence of views on several issues of common interest.

The Consulate General in Laâyoune, symbol of a diplomatic commitment

This proximity was notably translated into a major diplomatic initiative: the opening of the Consulate General of the Gabonese Republic in Laâyoune on January 17, 2020.

Beyond its administrative and consular scope, this establishment constitutes a strong diplomatic act, illustrating Gabon’s position on the Sahara issue and its attachment to the territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Morocco.

It also bears witness to the desire of both countries to consolidate their cooperation and give concrete expression to their partnership in the political, economic, and diplomatic fields.

Laâyoune: When Gabon makes the heart of African fraternity beat in the Moroccan Sahara

As the Kingdom of Morocco celebrates the 51st anniversary of the glorious Green March, the effervescence of the Southern Provinces reveals a diplomatic history written as much with the heart as with acts. At the heart of Laâyoune, the Consulate General of Gabon does not resemble a simple administrative building; it is a shared home where collective memory and the future of Africa meet daily.

In the corridors of the Consulate General of Gabon in Laâyoune, a special warmth reigns, made of shared smiles, frank handshakes, and spontaneous exchanges. At the head of this diplomatic anchor, Mr. Lézin-Issha BOUSSOUGOU, Acting Consul General, embodies a diplomacy with a human face, of proximity and field presence, far from the muffled formulas of traditional chancelleries.

While Moroccan collective memory recalls with emotion that month of November 1975 when thousands of men and women marched peacefully toward their destiny, the Gabonese presence in these provinces takes on a particularly active resonance.

« The Green March is not only a page of Moroccan history; it is a shared memory, » it is recalled at the consulate. « Gabonese nationals, notably students announced by the Gabonese diplomat in 2021, also walked this land the following year alongside their Moroccan brothers. Awakening this heritage means reminding youth that our solidarity does not date from yesterday. »

The quiet reflection of Dcheira: Gabon’s tribute to the blood shed for freedom.

This soul fraternity materialized in a moment of rare emotional intensity during the second edition of the meeting days titled « Gabon in Laâyoune ».

In the solemn silence of the martyrs’ cemetery of the historic Battle of Dcheira, a high place of armed resistance in the Sahara where the heroes of the National Liberation Army distinguished themselves in 1958, a high-level delegation bowed before the memory of those who gave their lives for the integrity of Moroccan territory. Under the solemn gaze of local authorities and the Gabonese community, the Ambassador High Representative of Gabon to Morocco proceeded to lay a wreath of flowers at the foot of the memorial. A strong gesture, marked by respect and gravity, meticulously coordinated by the Consulate General of the Gabonese Republic.

By honoring the memory of the martyrs of Dcheira, Gabonese diplomacy exceeded the framework of institutional protocols to touch upon the essential: recognition of sacrifice and anchoring diplomacy in respect for the founding struggles of the Moroccan people. This moment of shared emotion sealed, through memory and prayer, the indestructible link between the two nations.

A human-faced diplomacy and a festive anchorage:

A pioneer in January 2020 with the solemn opening of its consular representation, the Gabonese Republic has traced a sovereign and fraternal path. But beyond memory ceremonies and the decisive geopolitical scope of this act, it is the daily incarnation of this decision that strikes the visitor.

The consulate has transformed into a true cultural and social crossroads. Whether participating in events with Moroccan authorities from Laâyoune to Dakhla, passing through Guelmim or Es-Smara, accompanying and assisting a newly arrived Gabonese student in the region’s faculties, encouraging project leaders, or creating bridges between local artisans and African communities, the commitment is total.

The events of Gabon’s National Day and the meeting days named « Gabon in Laâyoune » in 2021 and 2022 bear witness to this: art exhibitions, sports events, tastings of traditional dishes, crossed rhythms of Gabonese music and Hassani songs… These moments of popular celebration do not merely bring institutions closer; they unite families, artists, and populations.

Art, image, and youth, the new ambassadors:

In this field dynamic, Gabonese diplomacy dusts off the codes. Conscious that friendship between two peoples also passes through emotions, the consular representation actively supports cultural and audiovisual initiatives.

The perspective of artistic productions and video clips dedicated to the Moroccan Sahara, led by Gabonese and Moroccan artists, gives a vibrant voice to this alliance. Through camera lenses and musical notes, an entire African youth discovers the realities, progressive development driven by the enlightened vision of His Majesty King Mohammed VI—may God accept him—through the new development model and the beauty of the Southern Provinces.

On their side, the many Gabonese students enrolled in training institutes in Laâyoune have naturally become the finest ambassadors of this South-South relationship. Supported and listened to by their consulate, they walk the city’s avenues with the certainty of being at home, trained to become the builders of tomorrow’s Gabon while keeping Morocco in their hearts.

A vibrant anchorage for the future:

In this symbolic period when Morocco commemorates the 51st anniversary of the Green March, Gabon’s dynamic presence in Laâyoune reaffirms an essential truth: the strongest diplomacy is the one that touches men and women in their flesh and memory.

From the moving memory of the martyrs of Dcheira to the joyful daily life of student youth, the constant commitment of this representation’s teams makes the Consulate General of Gabon much more than a chancellery. It does not only celebrate friendship between Libreville and Rabat; it demonstrates day after day that Laâyoune is more than ever a beacon of African cooperation, a land of fraternity where the future of a united, solidary, and faithful continent is written.

A friendship turned toward the future:

On the occasion of this celebration, the Embassy High Representation of the Gabonese Republic to the Kingdom of Morocco in Rabat extended its warm congratulations to His Majesty King Mohammed VI, to the Government, as well as to the Moroccan people.

Through this message, the Gabonese diplomatic representation reaffirms its country’s willingness to pursue, alongside the Kingdom of Morocco, the strengthening of bilateral relations.

Fifty-one years after the Green March, Gabon’s message inscribes itself in the continuity of a historical relationship, bearing witness to the solidity of ties between the two countries and their common desire to build a sustainable partnership at the service of their respective interests and the rapprochement between African peoples.