Assistant Editor, BBC Igbo

Job Requisition ID: 48253
Location: Lagos
Employment Type: Full-time

Purpose of the Role

• Working within the wider Nigeria Languages structure, the role reports to the News Editor who sets the overall vision, while maintaining the editorial autonomy required to serve audiences with rigour, relevance and independence.
• This role requires strong editorial judgement and courage, with the ability to uphold BBC Editorial Guidelines and defend impartial decisions under pressure. It is suited to an editor with strong journalistic instincts and clear digital ambition—someone who can sustain momentum, grow audience reach, and deliver against strategic goals.
• The Assistant Editor, BBC Igbo leads the day-to-day editorial output of the service, supporting the Nigeria Languages Editor in implementing strategy across all BBC-owned and operated platforms.

Your Key Responsibilities and Impact

• Apply performance data consistently to editorial planning, using analytics tools to track growth, evaluate success against targets and inform both short-term output and longer-term strategy.
• Use audience insight, analytics and platform trends to shape commissioning, distribution and editorial decision-making, ensuring content remains competitive and relevant.
• Commission, shape and deliver high-impact original journalism, including exclusives, investigations, explainers as distinctive digital first content.
• Identify gaps and opportunities in audience reach, proactively adjusting content mix, formats and editorial priorities to maximise impact.
• Work closely with other Assistant Editors and the News Editor to identify shared editorial priorities, coordinate coverage of cross-service and cross-border stories and minimise duplication.
• Embed a culture of performance awareness within the team, working with journalists to understand what drives engagement and how to use data to improve their output.
• Develop and implement a data-led video strategy, driving measurable digital growth with a clear focus on increasing reach among younger and female audiences.

Your Skills and Experience
Essential Criteria:

• Experience of using innovative storytelling techniques, including data journalism and other approaches that enhance clarity, depth and audience understanding.
• Strong track record of commissioning, shaping and delivering high-impact digital journalism, with a clear understanding of what drives audience engagement.
• Advanced understanding of audience analytics, search optimisation and platform performance, with the ability to translate data into effective editorial decisions.
• 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 communication skills in English and Igbo, both written and verbal, with the ability to represent the BBC effectively in senior internal forums.
• Strong editorial creativity, with the ability to adapt storytelling approaches and formats for different platforms, audiences and consumption behaviours.
• Demonstrable success in developing and implementing data-led video strategies, delivering measurable audience growth and impact.

Desired but Not Required:

• Excellent scriptwriting and storytelling skills for a variety of digital formats, including short, mid and long form video and audio (podcast) formats.
• Proven ability to shoot, script and edit video stories using tools such as Final Cut Pro (FCPx) and QEdit, with the ability to deliver polished, engaging, audience-focused content which is optimised for digital platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and Facebook.

Why Join the Team

• BBC World Service is establishing a new Nigeria Language Services Unit in Lagos, bringing together BBC Pidgin, BBC Yoruba and BBC Igbo under a single editorial leadership structure for the first time.
• It delivers independent, impartial journalism to a predominantly young audience navigating political uncertainty, widespread disinformation and ongoing challenges to democracy and good governance.
• BBC Igbo serves audiences mostly in Nigeria and a highly engaged global diaspora.
• The BBC’s editorial independence is central to the trust and value audiences place in the service.