Senior Journalist Team Manager, Dars Job

The BBC is an international multimedia broadcaster on radio, TV, online and social networks with a weekly global audience of 320 million. As part of an historic multi-million pound expansion of BBC Africa, the BBC World Service is introducing a wide range of new and exciting language and regional content to serve African and global audiences.

Job Location: Abuja
Employment Type: Full-time

Purpose of Role

• BBC Dars is an award-winning programme from the World Service which supports learning aimed at 11-16 year olds. It is designed for audiences of need where children are denied or restricted from accessing education.
• Since 2023, it has aired in Dari and Pashto and in 2025 it expanded to Arabic.
• The team have produced 6 series in Pashto and Dari and 2 in Arabic; each series consists of 12 episodes each for TV, audio, digital and social; each episode features maths, learning English, science, mental health, life skills and global inspirational stories.
• Our programme brings quality, accurate, educational content to young audiences.

Why Join the team

• You will be responsible for the output of the Dars Hausa digital programmes, social media strategy and publishing grid. You will also lead on production for TV and radio.
• You will manage a small team of journalists in Abuja, and be responsible for planning, production and delivery of multiplatform content.
• You will also represent the Dars Hausa team internally and externally where necessary.

Responsibilities and Impact

• Commission Dars output for multiple platforms through liaising with education consultants.
• Assign and commission stories, briefing presenters/producers/VJs. Steering treatments, with an emphasis on multiplatform output while maximising value for money.
• Support digital growth through effective application of analytics and best practices
• Oversee production and delivery of digital/social output content as required while also outputting for TV and radio consistently.
• Maintain a high level of journalistic, linguistic and production standards in the output. Giving proper editorial consideration to all output and making decisions based on risk, safety, suitability, quality and emergency changes.
• Ensure material is fact-checked, legally clear and compliant with BBC editorial policy, including flagging up issues and discussing them with member of editorial hierarchy
• Supervise, support and motivate a team of journalists to produce lively, interesting and high-quality content relevant to young audiences (11–16-year-olds).
• Liaise proactively and collaborate with Hausa service colleagues.

Your Skills and Experience
Essential Criteria:

• Fluency in Modern Standard Hausa and English, with the ability to translate accurately between both languages; proven ability to communicate effectively in English (written and spoken), and to translate content from English to Hausa and vice versa; excellent writing and sub-editing skills, including the ability to rewrite and restructure digital scripts and stories to a high standard.
• Demonstrable ability to script, film, produce, and edit high-quality digital video content; strong presentation skills across digital video, television, and audio, with the ability to engage and appeal to young audiences; experience in producing TV recordings in a studio environment and managing on-screen presenters.
• Sound editorial judgment, with a strong understanding of the BBC’s child safeguarding guidelines; proficiency in maximising the use of existing and emerging technologies.
• Strong interpersonal and leadership skills; ability to make proactive decisions, working both independently and in close collaboration with the Assistant Editor; ability to work effectively across multiple teams and resolve conflicts when necessary.
• Strong resource management skills, including staff, technical facilities, and budgets, ensuring cost-effectiveness; effective planning and prioritisation skills, taking into account deadlines, staffing, and resource constraints; flexibility and adaptability, with the ability to maintain high performance under pressure and manage changing priorities; a demonstrated commitment to improving diversity within the BBC, with an understanding of how individual differences add value.