Overview
Assistant Editor, BBC Hausa Jobs in Nigeria at BBC
Title: Assistant Editor, BBC Hausa
Company: BBC
Location: Nigeria
JOB DETAILS
JOB BAND: E
CONTRACT TYPE: Permanent, Full-time
DEPARTMENT: BBC World Service
LOCATION: Abuja, Nigeria
Local terms and conditions. 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.
We're happy to discuss flexible working. If you'd like to, please indicate your preference in the application – though there's no obligation to do so now. Flexible working will be part of the discussion at offer stage.
PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
BBC World Service is evolving its editorial team in Abuja while future-proofing its journalism to meet changing media consumption habits across sub-Saharan Africa.
BBC Hausa is one of the most trusted international news providers for audiences across West Africa and a highly engaged global diaspora. With a strong editorial heritage, the service is entering an exciting new phase: transforming into a digital-first, video-led operation designed to reach a new generation of Hausa audiences who primarily consume news via social media on smartphones.
WHY JOIN THE TEAM
This Assistant Editor role is central to that transformation. The successful candidate will help build BBC Hausa’s video and visual storytelling capability, contributing to filming, editing, scripting, presenting, and end-to-end content production.
This is a role for an editor who combines strong journalistic instincts with genuine digital ambition; someone who can lead a team through a significant transformation in how BBC Hausa reaches and serves its audiences, while maintaining the editorial standards and audience trust that make the service matter.
Your Key Responsibilities And Impact
- Lead BBC Hausa’s transformation into a digital-first, video-led service, embedding a culture of high editorial ambition, personal accountability, mutual respect and continuous learning.
- Commission, shape and deliver high-impact original journalism, including exclusives, investigations, explainers as distinctive digital first content.
- Work closely with the editorial leadership team in Nigeria to identify shared editorial priorities, coordinate coverage of cross-service stories to drive efficiency and minimise duplication.
- Develop and implement a data-led video strategy, driving measurable digital growth with a clear focus on increasing reach among younger and female audiences.
- Use audience insight, analytics and platform trends to shape commissioning, distribution and editorial decision-making, ensuring content remains competitive and relevant.
- Embed a culture of performance awareness within the team, supporting journalists to understand what drives engagement and how to use data to improve their output.
- Oversee the effective use of AI tools within editorial workflows, improving efficiency in areas such as research, translation, transcription, editing and optimisation while maintaining full editorial oversight.
Essential Criteria
YOUR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
- Proven experience managing and developing journalism teams, with the ability to build a positive, high-performing culture and support individuals to deliver their best work.
- Strong track record of commissioning, shaping and delivering high-impact digital journalism, with a clear understanding of what drives audience engagement.
- Demonstrable success in developing and implementing data-led video strategies, delivering measurable audience growth and impact.
- Advanced understanding of audience analytics, search optimisation and platform performance, with the ability to translate data into effective editorial decisions.
- Fluency in written and spoken Hausa, with a strong grasp of tone, nuance and audience expectations.
If you can bring some of these skills and experience, along with transferable strengths, we’d love to hear from you and encourage you to apply.
Disclaimer
This job description is a written statement of the essential characteristics of the job, with its principal accountabilities, incorporating a note of the skills, knowledge and experience required for a satisfactory level of performance. This is not intended to be a complete, detailed account of all aspects of the duties involved.
Please note: If you were to be offered this role, the BBC will conduct Employment screening checks which include Reference checks; Eligibility to work checks; and if applicable to the role, Safeguarding and Adverse media/Social media checks. Any offer made is conditional on these checks being satisfactory.
Before your start date, you may need to disclose any unspent convictions or police charges, in line with our Recruitment policy. This allows us to discuss any support you may need and assess any risks. Failure to disclose may result in the withdrawal of your offer.
For any general queries, please contact: [email protected]
We are unable to accept applications via CV and only applications made online will be considered. Please click on the APPLY NOW button to proceed with your application.
