Morocco Algeria Border Reopening Strategy Separated Families

Closed since 1994, the land border between Morocco and Algeria has become the most visible symbol of the rupture between the two neighbors. Its complete reopening seems politically difficult today, but an intermediate solution could be considered.

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In a study devoted to Moroccan-Algerian rivalry, the Policy Center for the New South advocates a gradual approach. The authors propose neither the immediate removal of all controls nor a sudden return to free movement.

They believe that the first relaxations could concern family and humanitarian reasons. Families separated by the border could thus benefit from supervised passages, without waiting for complete diplomatic rapprochement between Rabat and Algiers.

Starting with those whom the closure separates

Students, academics or certain categories of travelers could also benefit from targeted measures. Each arrangement would remain negotiated, secured and limited at first, in order to reduce its political cost for both governments.

For researchers, a partial opening would have a scope far greater than the number of people affected. It would restore circulation habits in a space where separation has become the norm for more than thirty years.

The border is indeed not only a commercial obstacle. It cuts family, social and cultural ties between two populations that share a history, a language and numerous personal connections. Its prolonged closure has gradually transformed the immediate neighbor into inaccessible territory.

The report does not minimize political disagreements, particularly around the Sahara. However, it believes that this issue should no longer prevent any cooperation in other areas. Human situations could be dealt with separately, without waiting for a global settlement of the rivalry between the two states.

This approach would begin with modest measures: facilitation of certain movements, priority treatment of family and humanitarian emergencies, university exchanges or creation of technical channels responsible for managing incidents.

On Bladi.net : Divided by Borders, United in Hope: Families Yearn for Morocco-Algeria Reopening

The reopening of the Morocco-Algeria border would therefore perhaps not begin with goods or tourism. It could first concern people directly affected by a closure that has lasted since 1994, before a possible gradual expansion to other categories.