Last month, when listeners in northern Nigeria were adjusted to Voice of America (VOA), many encountered music in place of their usual program production, a signal that historically hints at severe ethnic disturbances. “Is there a coup in the United States?” a listener asked VOA reporter Babangida Jibrin, who recalled that the US-funded station received a large number of worried calls after suddenly leaving the air on Friday.
According to AFP, the disappearance of VOA’s Hausa language service was once a major link to international news, marking the impact of the cuts implemented during Donald Trump’s presidency. Hausa Service, now open in Nigeria, has reached audiences in rural Ghana, Niger and Cameroon, where traditional print media is scarce and internet connections remain unreliable.
“People are now isolated from news, especially international news,” said Moussa Jaharou, listener in southern Niger. The service is particularly important in areas prone to conflict and underserved, providing not only daily news, but also health information about diseases such as HIV and malaria, which is now unavailable to many.
The VOA was established during World War II as a counterattack of Nazi propaganda and expanded significantly during the Cold War. It enjoys a reputation in Nigeria for its balanced, professional journalism while funding from the U.S. government. But under Trump, allegations of politicization surfaced, and the broadcaster’s budget was drastically lowered after his second term.
The shutdown is not the end of Hausa’s language media, and the industry still serves about 80 million speakers – but it’s a big blow. VOA’s extensive local stringer network has helped to convey trustworthy information to hard-to-reach rural areas and is not always able to provide perspective through local media influenced by political or commercial interests.
“It’s really true, it’s a pity,” said Sadibou Marong, chief head of journalists with no borders in West Africa, the VOA’s coverage of turbulent areas affected by armed groups, including other journalists under pressure to support the military narrative.
Challenged in the U.S. courts. Radio France International (RFI) has banned use in Niger, including its Hausa broadcast, while the BBC faces a three-month suspension in the country.
The influence of radio in northern Nigeria dates back to 1944, when British authorities established radio stations in Kano to attract the UK’s low literacy population. Founded in 1979, Voa Hausa involves this tradition, aired on local partner sites and reached millions in isolated areas.
Nigerian listener Muhammad Mukhtar has been listening to VOA since he was a child and said the losses exceeded news updates. “I still haven’t reached this shocking reality,” he said, regretting the end of in-depth programs such as health, religious and political debates.
Former journalist Alhassan Bala recalled the media’s solution-based journalism industry, such as the functions of Kaduna inventors who used drones to detect crop diseases, and stories that prompted government investigations, including an investigation into heavy metal exposure mined at Zamfara State.
The closure also means unemployment for journalists who have worked for years. Gibrin recalled the dangers reported during the dictatorship of Sani Abacha in Nigeria and burst into tears. “We used to have some places to treat us as CIA agents,” he said. “So who is laughing now?”
Bala runs Hausa fact checking website Judgereceived news while creating stories. “I just said, ‘Oh my God.’ That’s awful,” he said-and then turned to work, convinced him that the fact-checking work was more necessary than ever.
