ECOWAS's Inter-governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering in West Africa (GIABA) has given its firm commitment to continue to work in synergy with member states and the media to build a sub-region that is resilient to threats of money laundering and terrorist financing.

It said the sub-region continued to face evolving threats related to money laundering, terrorist and proliferation financing, and those phenomena undermined the effective implementation of Anti-Money Laundering/Countering the Financing of Terrorism/Countering Proliferation Financing (AML/CFT/FP) measures.

The Director General of GIABA, Edwin W. Harris Jr., who gave the commitment, mentioned the key vulnerabilities to include high-level corruption resulting in illicit financial flows largely from the extractive sector, the rise in terrorist-related activities, the misuse of virtual assets, drug trafficking, and the weak regulatory oversight of designated non-financial businesses and professions.

He gave the commitment when he addressed participants in a three-day GIABA regional training on investigative journalism on economic and financial crimes organised for journalists from ECOWAS member states.

Training

The training, among others, aimed at sharpening the skills of the 40 journalists attending the training in reporting on economic and financial crimes; building a strong alliance between GIABA and the media to better disseminate information on money laundering and financial crimes; and sharing regional initiatives in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.

Participants

GIABA is a specialised institution of ECOWAS that, among others, develops strategies to protect the economies of its member states from abuse and the laundering of the proceeds of crime.

Media

Mr Harris acknowledged that the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing could not be fully effective without the active involvement of the media, stressing that the media's role in keeping watch, raising awareness and investigation placed it at the heart of pushing for transparency and accountability.

"Through your investigations, you help to uncover illegal practices, alert the public, shape public opinion, challenge decision-makers and strengthen governance.

By bringing you together, GIABA intends to continue mobilising the media sector and strengthen your capacities so that you can play your full role in combating these scourges," he advised.

Fight against money laundering

The Minister of Social Communication of Guinea-Bissau, Maria de Conceicao Evora, who opened the training, pointed out that the role of journalists in the fight against money laundering and economic and financial crimes was crucial, that was why it is important for them to develop their skills and tools to work assiduously.

GIABA National Correspondent for Guinea-Bissau, Justino SA, said money laundering and economic and financial crimes were serious concerns that needed investigations to be carried out in order to unearth them.

He pointed out that the fight against money laundering required the efforts of all, not only the government.

A representative of the Minister of Finance, Mamadou Balde, expressed hope that at the end of the training, the journalists would be well equipped to investigate money laundering and other financial crimes.