Morocco’s integration into the EU’s new mechanism for monitoring humanitarian assistance to the Tindouf camps marks a major policy shift, giving Rabat a formal role in scrutinizing the use of European funds and food aid.
The EU–Morocco arrangement, published on January 28, establishes a regular control mechanism jointly managed with Rabat to ensure that aid reaches its intended beneficiaries.
This move comes against a backdrop of longstanding concerns about the management of assistance in the camps. Algeria has repeatedly rejected UNHCR and UN Security Council calls to conduct a census of the Moroccan Sahrawis held in the Polisario-run camps, blocking efforts to determine the real number of refugees and the scale of needs.
European oversight bodies have also documented systemic abuses. A damning OLAF report revealed years-long diversion of EU humanitarian aid by both Algerian officials and Polisario leaders, including the resale of donated food and medical supplies in Algerian and Mauritanian markets.
Meanwhile, evidence shows that the Polisario has inflated population figures in the camps to secure larger aid allocations, with estimates pushed as high as 155,000–165,000 despite independent assessments suggesting far lower numbers.
By involving Rabat directly in oversight, the EU aims to strengthen transparency, reduce diversion risks, and verify the real impact of aid, a shift that places renewed pressure on Algeria and the Polisario to account for decades of opaque management.
