Off the heels of successive coups in the region, ACLED and GI-TOC are launching a joint series of publications profiling non-state armed groups in West Africa that explores the intersections of their involvement in illicit economies and attempts at governance provision. The first installment analyzes the operations and organizational structure of the al-Qaeda-affiliated Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) in the Sahel. It focuses on the central role of illicit economies in JNIM’s governance strategies and in financing and resourcing the group’s operations.

Join us on 19 October at 9 am EST/3 pm CEST for a virtual launch of the inaugural report in this series, featuring a panel discussion with ACLED Associate Analysis Coordinator Héni Nsaibia, GI-TOC Senior Analyst Dr. Eleanor Beevor, International Crisis Group Senior Analyst Sahel Ibrahim Yahaya Ibrahim, and Ornella Moderan, a political and security analyst working on the Sahel, moderated by ACLED Africa Regional Specialist Ladd Serwat.