Reporting Trip I: December 2012

The IWMF led the first of two reporting trips to Western Sahara in December 2012. The group was granted unprecedented access to a number of sites and officials in Western Sahara, conducted interviews with local officials, and met with Sahrawi activists, trade union representatives, as well as human rights workers.

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Reporting Trip II: May 2013

The IWMF led its second reporting trip to Western Sahara and Morocco in early May 2013. Six women journalists from international media outlets toured the region, meeting government officials, civil society groups and exchanging knowledge with reporters from local newsrooms.

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Reporting Fellows

The first group of journalist fellows who traveled to Western Sahara report media outlets such as NPR, The Christian Science Monitor, PBS NewsHour, BBC, CNN.com, International Herald Tribune and The New York Times.

Fellows Profiles

Western Sahara Stories

The fellowship aims to bring attention to underreported stories from the Western Sahara. As the IWMF fellows were granted unprecedented access to sites and officials there, their stories provide unique insights and angles.

Stories

"It is fascinating to be granted access to an under-reported place"

Edythe McNamee is one of six female journalists who participated in the first wave of IWMF’s Western Sahara Reporting Fellowship. The IWMF asked McNamee to share some of her reflections on the experience.

Interview

"It can be difficult to convey just how sensitive a topic this issue is in Morocco"

Portia Walker is one of six female journalists who participated in the second wave of IWMF’s Western Sahara Reporting Fellowship. "It would have been very hard to convince an editor to pay for a trip on this scale but the fellowship meant we were able to do and learn a huge amount in a short period," she told the IWMF.

Interview

Reporting from Western Sahara

The forgotten conflict's global implications