The head of the investigation desk at Media Trust Group, publishers of Daily Trust titles, Lami Sadiq has been shortlisted for the 2024 Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime (GI-TOC) fellowship.
Sadiq, alongside six others were selected across West Africa.
In a statement, the organisation said the fellowship is a new initiative of the Resilience Fund in collaboration with the West African Observatory.
“This fellowship is part of a programme, Support to the Mitigation of Destabilising Effects of Transnational Organised Crime (M-TOC), which combines traditional security responses with community-driven resilience measures. It is informed by cutting-edge research and investigative journalism on the intersection of illicit economies and instability.”
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It noted that the theme of the fellowship is ‘Investigating Illicit Economies and Instability’ with each of the fellows engaging with experts and be given opportunities to disseminate their publications.
“M-TOC is an ECOWAS project commissioned by the German Federal Foreign Office, implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, and the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime (GITOC), from 2024 to 2025.”
It added that journalists play a crucial role in shedding light on the dynamics of illicit economies and their relationship to organised crime and thus, their investigative work is vital in helping communities and policymakers better understand these issues.
Other fellows include Gideon Sarpongund, from Ghana; Sani Saidu Muhammad, Nigeria; Loukoumane Worou Tchehou, Benin; Kamboissoa Samboé, Togo; Arnauld Kassouin, Benin and Aicha Diarra from Côte d’Ivoire.