VOA Somali currently airs from 1600-1700 UTC (7:00-8:00 PM in Somalia), with a repeat broadcast at 1700 UTC. The additional half hour, 1630 to 1700 UTC, includes a wider variety of listener interactives, such as call-ins, roundtable discussions, and debates on topics ranging from health, education, and youth to business and development. Weekend programming will offer in-depth discussions and interviews focusing on the interests and needs of Somalis.
"Listener response to our programs has been overwhelming," said VOA Somali Service Chief Fred Cooper. "They appreciate the accurate, balanced, and timely news and information we provide and continue to ask for more," he added.
VOA's Somali Service was launched on February 12, 2007. Broadcasts are available on AM, FM and shortwave radio frequencies 13580 Khz, 15620 Khz, 1431 Khz. The 1700 UTC broadcast repeats on HornAfrik (88.8 FM in Mogadishu), a VOA-affiliated station.
VOA's Somali-language service is funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of State. For more information, please visit VOA's website at http://www.voanews.com/somali/.
The Voice of America, which first went on the air in 1942, is a multimedia international broadcasting service funded by the U.S. government through the Broadcasting Board of Governors. VOA broadcasts more than 1,000 hours of news, information, educational, and cultural programming every week to an estimated worldwide audience of more than 115 million people. Programs are produced in 45 languages.
For more information, contact the Office of Public Affairs at (202) 203-4959, or by e-mail at publicaffairs@voa.gov.
