UN Chief calls for decolonisation of Western Sahara and 16 other territories

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has renewed calls for the full decolonisation of Western Sahara and 16 other territories that remain under colonial administration.

Addressing the 2026 session of the Special Committee on Decolonisation (C-24), Guterres said the global body must recommit to completing the work of ending colonial rule more than six decades after the United Nations formally began its decolonisation agenda.

“This organisation was founded as a forum where nations meet as equals — not as rulers and the ruled,” he stated, stressing that decolonisation has been central to the UN’s mission since its inception.

He warned that the legacy of colonialism continues to shape modern societies, leaving behind deep economic exploitation, entrenched inequality, racism, and the marginalisation of affected populations from decision-making processes.

The C-24 was created by the UN General Assembly in 1961 to oversee progress toward granting independence to territories that have yet to achieve full self-governance under Chapter XI of the UN Charter. Its mandate originates from the landmark 1960 Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples.

Guterres outlined key priorities for advancing the remaining decolonisation efforts. He urged inclusive dialogue involving non-self-governing territories, administering powers, UN member states, and other relevant stakeholders. He also emphasised that each territory’s situation should be handled individually, guided by the UN Charter, the 1960 Declaration, and relevant General Assembly resolutions.

Since 1945, more than 80 former colonies representing roughly 750 million people have achieved independence. However, Western Sahara and 16 other Non-Self-Governing Territories, most of them small island territories in the Caribbean and Pacific, remain on the UN list, with a combined population of nearly two million.

Western Sahara is widely regarded as Africa’s last colony yet to gain independence. Spain administered the territory, then known as Spanish Sahara, until 1976, when it withdrew, triggering a prolonged dispute involving Algeria, Morocco and Mauritania.

Since Spain’s departure, control of the territory has been divided. The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), operating a government-in-exile from Tindouf, Algeria, controls about 30 per cent of the land. Meanwhile, Morocco administers roughly 70 per cent of the territory and has reportedly indicated plans to resolve the long-running conflict following talks brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump.