News Editor, BBC Hausa
This is an editorial leadership role at BBC Hausa, responsible for setting the daily editorial agenda and shaping the long term vision of the service.
JOB DETAILS
JOB BAND: E
CONTRACT TYPE: Permanent, Full-time
DEPARTMENT: BBC World Service
LOCATION: Abuja, Nigeria
Local terms and conditions apply
Any offer of employment with the BBC is conditional upon the candidate having the legal right to work in Nigeria and having successfully completed the mandatory National Youth Service programme (NYSC) or holding a valid certificate of exemption.
PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
This is an editorial leadership role at BBC Hausa, responsible for setting the daily editorial agenda and shaping the long term vision of the service. The Editor will lead the Hausa newsroom with sound editorial judgement, deep audience understanding and strong people leadership. The role is central to ensuring BBC Hausa delivers accurate, impartial and distinctive journalism that serves audiences across Northern Nigeria, Niger, Ghana, Cameroon and the wider Hausa speaking world, across digital, audio and video platforms. The Editor will also play a key role in driving digital transformation, broadening the range of stories, and strengthening BBC Hausa’s impact and relevance in a fast changing media environment.
WHY JOIN THE TEAM
BBC Hausa is one of the BBC’s most influential language services, with a large and loyal audience and a strong reputation for trusted journalism. This role offers a rare opportunity to:
• Play a pivotal role in the digital evolution of BBC Hausa, expanding reach and relevance among younger and more diverse audiences.
• Shape the editorial direction and future growth of a major international news service.
• Lead a talented, experienced team of journalists producing content for millions of people every week.
• Uphold and strengthen the BBC’s reputation for independence, impartiality and public service journalism in a complex and highly scrutinised environment.
YOUR KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND IMPACT:
Editorial Leadership and Vision
• Set and drive a clear editorial vision for BBC Hausa, delivering high quality, distinctive journalism across digital, audio and video platforms.
• Lead the daily news agenda, ensuring BBC Hausa is strong on breaking news, original reporting, and enterprise journalism relevant to Hausa speaking audiences.
• Apply the BBC’s editorial values and guidelines consistently when making decisions on complex, sensitive and high risk stories.
Standards, Risk and Reputation
• Safeguard the BBC’s editorial integrity, managing legal, editorial and reputational risk.
• Ensure all output complies with BBC editorial guidelines, including impartiality, accuracy and fairness.
• Respond to audience feedback, complaints and editorial challenges with authority and transparency.
Digital Growth and Audience Focus
• Lead the ongoing digital transformation of BBC Hausa, ensuring content is optimised for social, mobile and emerging platforms.
• Broaden the story mix to reflect the full diversity of Hausa speaking communities and reach new and under served audiences.
• Use audience insight and performance data to inform editorial decisions and improve impact.
Leadership and People Management
• Provide inspirational leadership within the newsroom, fostering an inclusive, collaborative and high performance culture.
• Lead on recruitment, development, training and succession planning, nurturing diverse talent both on air and off air.
• Support staff wellbeing, safety and professional growth, particularly in a challenging news environment.
Collaboration and Representation
• Work closely with BBC News Group, other World Service language teams and wider BBC stakeholders to ensure alignment and collaboration.
• Contribute to and deliver wider BBC and World Service strategic projects.
Operations and Governance
• Take responsibility for budget delivery, identifying and managing financial pressures and ensuring value for money.
• Regularly review team performance, set clear objectives and ensure accountability.
• Ensure health, safety and duty of care responsibilities are fully understood and met, particularly for journalists operating in high risk environments.
YOUR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:
• Deep knowledge of digital journalism and experience of driving change in a multi platform newsroom.
• Strong understanding of data and analytics tools, with the ability to interpret audience and performance data to inform sound editorial decision‑making.
• Extensive editorial leadership experience in news, ideally within international, multilingual or public service media.
• Strong understanding of Hausa speaking audiences, regional politics, culture and social issues across West Africa.
• Proven ability to exercise sound editorial judgement on complex, sensitive and fast moving stories.
• Demonstrable experience leading and motivating teams in a high pressure news environment.
DESIRABLE:
• Experience working within large, matrixed organisations and managing a wide range of stakeholders, including external and governmental actors.
• Strong understanding of audience growth strategies, social platforms and data informed commissioning.
• Fluency in Hausa and a strong command of English.
If you bring many — though not necessarily all — of these skills and experiences, along with strong editorial instincts, leadership capability and a passion for public service journalism, we will strongly encourage you to apply.
