Mr. Umar works with the Financial Action Task Force-Style Regional body for West Africa (GIABA) , based in Dakar, Senegal, as the Director of Policy and Research. He is a recognized AML/CFT and financial crimes expert, with over 24 years of operational and policy development experience.  He leads the conduct of researches and policy for GIABA and has been an active  participant in the work of the Financial Action Task Forces  for the last twelve years especially in the areas of policy development and  risks, trends and methods. .   Mr. Umar is a Nigerian trained counter-narcotics officer, and worked with the Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency for twelve years before he joined GIABA in April 2009. His prime expertise is in counter narcotics, AML/CFT (Risk and policy) and organized crime. He is a Chevening Fellow (Bramshill Police college, UK, 2009) and a fellow of the international Leadership Visitors Program (US State Department, 2003), both on combatting international organised. crime.