Ayesha Tanzeem is the Director of the VOA South and Central Asia Division. Prior to the November 2021 appointment Ayesha was Chief of Voice of America’s Afghanistan and Pakistan bureau based in the city of Islamabad, Pakistan. She was one of a few foreign correspondents that traveled to areas under the control and influence of the Islamic State militant group while it was at the peak of its power in eastern Afghanistan in 2015. Her reporting brought to light tales of harrowing cruelty and suffering, earning her the David Burke award for Courage in Journalism. She was also host of “On the Line” and “Access Point with Ayesha Tanzeem,” two VOA current affairs TV shows. Tanzeem has lived and worked in three continents — Asia, Europe, and North America — working for various media outlets including the BBC. She has covered subjects as widespread as U.S. presidential elections, terrorism, and conflicts in the Middle East, the Black Lives Matter movement in the U.S., the Syrian refugee/migrant crisis in Europe, and the efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan. In Pakistan and Afghanistan, she covered issues related to politics, governance, militancy, terrorism, and human rights, particularly women and minority rights in Afghanistan and Pakistan. She frequently traveled to conflict zones in both countries to capture first hand accounts of life under the shadow of violence. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from Georgia State University.
Ayesha Tanzeem, South and Central Asia Division
