The sudden silencing of Voice of America (VOA) broadcasts across West Africa has left millions of Hausa-speaking listeners disconnected from critical news and health programming, with many fearing the void will deepen isolation in conflict-prone regions, media reports have confirmed.
According to AFP, the U.S.-funded network went off air abruptly last month after President Donald Trump’s administration slashed its budget, dismantling a decades-old service that reached rural communities in Nigeria, Niger, Ghana, and Cameroon.
For many in northern Nigeria, the unexplained switch to music on VOA’s frequency evoked memories of military takeovers.
“People called us in panic, asking if soldiers had seized control in America”, said Babangida Jibrin, a former VOA Hausa reporter, describing the confusion that followed the shutdown.
The Hausa-language service, launched in 1979, was a lifeline for millions in regions where print media is scarce and internet access unreliable. Its closure has left listeners like Moussa Jaharou in southern Niger struggling to find alternative sources for international news.
“People are now cut off, especially in areas facing jihadist violence,” Jaharou told AFP.
VOA’s demise marks another setback for West Africa’s fragile media landscape, already strained by bans on outlets like BBC and France’s RFI in Niger.
“It’s a shame,” said Sadibou Marong of Reporters Without Borders. “VOA reported on military abuses where local journalists faced pressure to toe the government line.”
The network was known for its investigative work, including exposing child lead poisoning in Nigeria’s mining regions. Its health programs—covering malaria prevention and HIV—also vanished overnight, leaving a gap in public education.
“I just said, ‘Oh my God,’” Bala recalled after receiving the news mid-assignment. “Now more than ever, fact-checking is crucial.”
Jibrin, who endured harassment under Nigeria’s military dictatorship in the 1990s, fought tears as he questioned the timing: “They used to call us CIA agents. Now who will have the last laugh?”
The loss extends beyond news. Listener Muhammad Mukhtar lamented the end of programs like “Hot Seat,” a political debate show, and features on Islam i”
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