VOA Broadcasting in Somali
VOA reaches Somalia and neighboring countries on AM, FM, shortwave, the Internet, and digital platforms. A team of Somali broadcasters based in Washington, D.C., along with freelance reporters in Somalia and elsewhere in Africa and the world, provides news to a country with a federal government fighting the terrorist group al-Shahab.
Quick Facts
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Established: February 2007
Target Areas: Somalia and rest of the Horn of Africa region
Weekly Audience: 51% in Mogadishu, and a significant percentage of the one to two million Somali diaspora globally
Radio Programming: 4 hours daily, seven days per week (one hour is repeated daily) TV Programming: 25 minutes a week Digital Programming: 60 minutes a week
Broadcast programs and additional Features are available at:
Facebook:
Twitter:
Podcasts: 3 podcasts available on My Yahoo, iTunes, and voanews.com |
Programs and Features
VOA Somali broadcasts four radio programs daily: a 30-minute breakfast show from 0330-0400 UTC (6:30-7:00 am in Somalia); a 30-minute youth show from 10:30-11:00 UTC (1:30pm-2:pm in Somalia); a one-hour afternoon program from 1300-1400 UTC (4:00-5:00 pm in Somalia); and a one- hour evening program from 1600-1700 UTC (7:00-8:00 pm) that is repeated at 17:00 18 UTC (8:00 pm, Somalia time) for affiliates on a daily basis. The last half an hour of the repeat show is a fresh program on CVE topics, Monday-Friday.
Programs air on AM, FM, shortwave radio and the Internet. News is also accessible on mobile devices. FM Somali stations that carry the program include Radio Mogadishu, Kulmiye Radio, also in Mogadishu, STAR FM in Kenya and parts of Somalia, SBC Radio and Radio Daljir in Puntland, Somalia. Radio Garowe in Somalia hosts a link to the program on its website. VOA Somali is broadcast via two 24-hour VOA FM transmitters - in Hargeisa, Somalia (Somaliland), and in Djibouti.
The radio programs focus in depth on a wide range of Somali affairs, including political and social issues, health topics, development, music and culture. Panel discussions, debates, interviews with newsmakers, and call-ins encourage Somalis – both leaders and the general audience – to express their opinions on topics of interest. People who drive the news, from the Somali President to insurgents, are interviewed.
The service also produces a 15-minute weekly TV show, Qubanaha (“Magazine”).
Qubanaha Maanta (Today’s Variety) – a Facebook show anchored from Washington with U.S. and international news, correspondent reports from Somalia, in-studio analysis of technology and sports, and viewer-contributed video in a “What’s on Your Mind?” segment. Qubanaha Maanta live streams three days a week.