News Editor, Horn of Africa Languages

Role overview

The BBC World Service is launching a new Horn of Africa Language Services unit in Nairobi, bringing BBC Somali, BBC Afaan Oromo, BBC Tigrinya and BBC Amharic into one editorial leadership structure for the first time. This senior position is a major opportunity to influence how the BBC reaches audiences across Ethiopia, Somalia and the wider Horn of Africa diaspora during a period of significant political, humanitarian and digital change.

As News Editor for Horn of Africa Language Services, you will provide the unit’s single editorial direction. The role calls for leadership across four language services, oversight of a shared on-demand production hub, and a strong digital-first mindset aimed at expanding reach and relevance, especially among young women, a key audience the BBC wants to grow.

You will guide four Assistant Editors, each responsible for day-to-day editorial delivery in their own service, and ensure the broader team creates journalism that would not be possible within isolated service structures.

Employment details

• Job band: E
• Contract type: Permanent, full-time
• Department: BBC World Service
• Location: Nairobi, Kenya
• Local terms and conditions apply
• Flexible working can be discussed during the hiring process and, if relevant, at the offer stage

Key responsibilities

You will be responsible for setting the editorial direction for the Horn of Africa Language Services and turning BBC World Service priorities into a unified regional plan that each language service can pursue confidently.

The role also involves leading the shift toward genuinely digital-first, video-led output while fostering ambition, accountability, respect and continuous learning across the team.

You will manage a dispersed editorial workforce across multiple languages, cultures and work environments, building team cohesion while preserving the identity of each service.

Line management of four Assistant Editors and one Senior Journalist Team Manager will be part of the role, including performance oversight, editorial coaching, strategic guidance and career development.

You will shape the unit’s digital approach across YouTube, social media, WhatsApp and BBC digital platforms, with the aim of increasing reach and engagement across all four services.

A further part of the role is to commission and support ambitious journalism, including investigations, documentaries, data-led work and long-form or mid-form video, using the Production Hub to deliver content at a scale no individual service could achieve alone.

You will serve as the BBC’s main editorial representative for the Horn of Africa in senior internal discussions and when engaging with external stakeholders.

Required experience and knowledge

• A strong background in senior editorial leadership within journalism, together with a track record of producing ambitious, high-impact work in challenging political settings.
• Clear evidence of breaking down silos and creating collaborative working environments.
• Experience building and delivering successful data-driven video strategies that produced measurable digital growth.
• Proven ability to guide teams through major organisational change with tact, clarity and emotional intelligence.
• In-depth understanding of East Africa, especially Ethiopia and Somalia, including the region’s politics, societies, languages and media landscape.
• Experience growing audiences among young people and women through digital-first, video-led editorial strategies, along with a solid grasp of audience analytics, search optimisation and platform performance measures.
• Strong written and spoken English, plus fluency in at least one of the unit’s working languages: Somali, Amharic, Afaan Oromo or Tigrinya, with the ability to represent the BBC effectively in senior internal and external forums.

Additional information

The BBC notes that this job description summarises the essential nature of the role, including the main duties, skills, knowledge and experience needed for satisfactory performance, but it is not a complete list of every task involved.

If an offer is made, employment will be subject to screening checks, which may include references, eligibility to work verification, and where relevant safeguarding and adverse media or social media checks. Any offer will depend on these checks being completed satisfactorily.

Before your start date, you may need to disclose any unspent convictions or police charges in line with recruitment policy. This helps the organisation identify any support needs and assess potential risks. Failure to disclose could lead to the offer being withdrawn.

For general queries, the contact email provided is bbchr@bbc.co.uk.

Applications are accepted online only, and CV-only submissions will not be considered.