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Finance Uncovered trains African journalists on money laundering, tax evasion

Finance Uncovered trains African journalists on money laundering, tax evasion

11 February 2020

The current crisis facing markets has reminded us about the importance of financial journalism and the need to understand techniques used in investigating illicit financial flows, a British veteran journalist, Nick Mathiason told Botswana and Malawi journalists recently.

Mathiason is Director of Finance Uncovered, an investigative journalism training and reporting project based in London. 

Speaking at two separate training workshops on Zoom – a communications software that provides remote conferencing services combined video conferencing – Mathiason told journalists in Lilongwe and Gaborone that understanding company accounts is the corner stone for business reporters who want to hold those in power accountable. The workshop included techniques on finding companies online and analysing their financial records and other practical tools to unlock financial secrecy. Another journalist from Finance Uncovered, Lionel Faull drilled journalists on money laundering, tax evasion and how companies and some businesspeople hide ill-gotten wealth in offshore accounts. 

INK co-founder, Ntibinyane Ntibinyane drilled journalists on ways to detect misinformation and disinformation, while former newspaper editor and veteran journalist, Abraham Motsokono stressed the importance of understanding ethics especially as a media practitioner as they are the eyes and ears of the public hence the need to report news that are factual, accurate and objective. He urged journalist to refrain from partaking in the spread of fake news especially in social media platforms.

The INK CIJ in partnership with Washington-based International Republican Institute.

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