Employing only women and run by women, “Bilan,” which means “bright and clear” in the Somali language, offers women a safe workspace and the power to choose what they report and how they cover it.
Somalia’s first-ever women-staffed and -led media unit is made up of six women (five journalists and an editor) and is being hosted by Dalsan Media Group, one of the country’s leading media houses, in specially equipped offices that occupy the entire floor of a building in Mogadishu.
Bilan is supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), but remains fully independent, with complete editorial control.
The team reports a mix of hard news and in-depth features, with a focus on issues of importance to women. “The women journalists decide what they will cover, when they will cover it and how. For the first time in Somalia, women are in charge of the story”, Bilan Media says.
Bilan’s six women journalists come from across Somalia and bring a wealth of media experience to the table, along with a passion for women’s rights, fair reporting and journalistic integrity. “With its unique perspective and access to women’s lives and opinions, Bilan is breaking new ground not just for women journalists but also for Somali journalism, shining a light on stories from domestic violence to pay inequality that have long been ignored”, Bilan Media says.
Below, the 6 members of the Bilan Media team (Bios available on the Bilan Media website)
Nasrin Mohamed Ibrahim, Chief Editor
Nasrin Mohamed Ibrahim is the Chief Editor. She started working as a journalist in 2010 when she was still at secondary school, making children’s programmes for Voice of Peace radio in Mogadishu. In 2012, Nasrin joined Radio Mustaqbal. She was promoted to Head of Production just a year later. She has also worked for Hiraan Online, Somali American Radio and BBC Media Action. “It is not easy being a woman in a senior position,” says Nasrin. “All female journalists face prejudice both inside and outside the office. Members of the community, especially men, challenge you every step of the way. Even your family resists you becoming a journalist.”
Nasrin Mohamed Ibrahim plays a leading role in Somali women’s media groups and has been Deputy Director of the Somali Women Journalists’ Organisation since 2013.
With her passion for football, Nasrin Mohamed Ibrahim set up a women’s football team, Sister Sports, and plays at least twice a week. She also likes riding motorbikes and driving auto-rickshaws.
Fathi Mohamed Ahmed, Deputy Chief Editor
Fathi Mohamed Ahmed is the deputy chief Editor and she believes Bilan will bring a new kind of journalism to Somalia. She led the Production Department at Goobjoog Media Group from 2016 to 2022, organising domestic and foreign news coverage, deploying correspondents and generating programme ideas. She has also worked as a radio presenter and producer for the AU-UN Information Support Team, a producer at Danan radio and a consultant for a UN gender and media project. She has a degree in International Relations and Diplomacy.
Fathi Mohamed Ahmed developed her passion for journalism as a child, listening to the BBC with her grandmother. She believes engaging, accurate storytelling is a key part of good journalism, something she learned by spending so much time at her grandmother’s side. “The biggest challenge facing female journalists in Somalia is abuse, especially from male journalists” says Fathi. “They offer to help you but only if you give them something in return. They harass and exploit their female colleagues. Bilan will help bring an end to that.”
Farhio Mohamed Hassan, Reporter
Farhio Mohamed Hassan has been a journalist for 10 years. She worked for Aman Radio and Hatuf Radio while studying for her degree in Journalism and Mass Communication at Mogadishu’s Modern University for Science and Technology. She then worked as a producer and editor for Dalsan Media Group and BBC Media Action. “So many of my female colleagues have left the profession because of harassment and a lack of opportunities,” she says. “But I stuck it out because I believe women as well as men need to bring Somalia’s difficulties into the open, however difficult it may be.”
Farhio Mohamed Hassan would like to tell more stories about women in rural areas, especially those involved in agriculture. She wants to report on women who have successful lives in rural areas, moving away from the stereotypes of nomadic women who have lost everything through drought, floods and war.
Kiin Hasan Fakat, Reporter
Kiin Hasan Fakat was born in the town of Buale in southern Somalia but fled across the border to Kenya as a young child when war engulfed her homeland. She was brought up and educated in the vast refugee camp of Dadaab, for a time the largest in the world. After completing a journalism course at Kenya’s North Eastern National Polytechnic, Kiin worked for a year as a radio producer and reporter in Kenya for the Somali station Risala FM and the Kenyan station Key FM. She then decided to go home to Somalia despite the ongoing insecurity. She moved to the southern city of Kismayo where she worked for Radio Kismayo and other media outlets. Kiin’s very first radio programme focused on women’s issues and she remains committed to telling their stories. She plays an active role in women’s media groups including the Somali Media Women’s Association.
Naciima Saed Salah, Reporter
After completing secondary school in Hargeisa, Naciima Saed Salah could not afford to go to university. She managed to find a free journalism course and obtained a diploma before doing a two-year unpaid internship with Bulsho TV. She then worked for a number of media houses in different parts of Somalia, including Garowe, Bossasso and Mogadishu. Her financial problems did not stop there as she was often paid irregularly or not at all. Naciima also faced the challenge of clannism, especially when she worked in places where her clan was considered the enemy. She says her colleagues believed her clan identity meant she would not be able to be neutral. She says clan discrimination led to her being bullied, made to do extra work and not being paid her salary. Naciima is especially interested in reporting on the vulnerable in society and covering issues usually considered untouchable in the Somali media. She tells human stories, including that of an old man who has lived for years with HIV/AIDS. Another story focused on a grandmother whose mentally ill daughter ran away from home after it was destroyed by floods. She has never been seen again, leaving the old woman to care for her grandchildren alone.
Shukri Mohamed Abdi, the youngest Reporter
Shukri Mohamed Abdi comes from Baidoa, the regional capital of South-West state. From an early age, she noticed that women in the region were not equal to men and decided to dedicate her life to fighting for their rights. She finished school in 2019 and went straight into journalism at the same time as studying for her degree. She has worked as a technician and reporter at Radio Baidoa, and a producer at South-West state radio and television.
Shukri Mohamed Abdi faced many challenges after she decided to become a journalist. She says people from her clan do not understand what being a journalist involves, that they insult and threaten her because of her job. Like other journalists in Somalia, she also faces threats from militant groups.
Shukri Mohamed Abdi has already made a difference in South-West state. She noticed that not a single woman held a Director’s position in the administration and decided to raise the issue in the media. She organised a talk show, inviting people in powerful positions to take part in the debate. Shortly afterwards, a woman was given a job as a Director.
