The Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs is an advisory committee to the Moroccan government on Western Sahara. It was created under Mohammed VI in early 2006, after a new autonomy plan proposed by Morocco to replace the United Nations' Baker Plan. The Polisario Front opposes Morocco's autonomy plan, demanding for a referendum and independence.

Western Sahara is a disputed territory on the northwest coast of Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR); the remaining 80% is occupied and administered by neighboring Morocco. It has a surface area of 266,000 square kilometres (103,000 sq mi). It is the second most sparsely populated country in the world and most sparsely in Africa, mainly consisting of desert flatlands. The population is estimated at about 500,000, of which nearly 40% live in Morocco-controlled Laayoune, the largest city in Western Sahara.