大象传媒

Using radio to address indoor air pollution in Ethiopia

Air pollution is now the world麓s largest single environmental health risk, and is a leading cause of illness and death in developing countries.

Published: 1 July 2018
Using radio to address indoor air pollution in Ethiopia through drama.
I trust Golaafala so much that I bought a cookstove after listening to the drama.
鈥 Emebet Kedir, Agaro, Jimma Zone

In Ethiopia alone, indoor air pollution 鈥 caused by inefficient cooking stoves, smoke from open fires and kerosene lamps 鈥 triggers tens of thousands of premature deaths per year.

大象传媒 Media Action is producing a radio drama and public service announcements 鈥 as part of a project called Air We Breathe 鈥 to help address the harmful health effects of indoor cooking and lighting on people living in rural communities in Oromia, Ethiopia.

The drama, called Golaafala (meaning 鈥榮olution from within鈥 in Oromiffa) revolves around the lives of a young woman, 18-year-old Warite, and two young men who admire her 鈥 minibus driver Nahom and the well-to-do Wako, who owns a mill. When a character is taken to hospital with a serious lung problem 鈥 the audience finds out what the drama is all about. Through its depiction of everyday life the drama showcases practical solutions to indoor pollution 鈥 such as using stoves that emit less smoke, improving ventilation in the home and lamps powered by cleaner fuels for example, solar lamps.

鈥淲e decided that storytelling and radio theatre are the best ways to address such a serious topic,鈥 explains Dawit Batri, 骋辞濒补补蹿补濒补鈥檚 senior producer. 鈥淪poken word, poetry and music are very popular in Oromia and appeal to the artistic nature of the Oromo people.鈥

The format, broadcast on Oromia Radio, is proving popular. "I love to listen to Golaafala every Wednesday because it鈥檚 a real reflection of the villages we live in and it's like hearing your own voice,鈥 says Bezina Getachew, a listener from the eastern town of Harar. The drama is helping inspire action. "Listening to Golaafala is like listening to my own voice. It's the exact reflection of the society I live in" said Emebet Kedir from Agaro, Jimma Zone. "I trust Golaafala so much that I bought a cookstove after listening to the drama."

Project information

Project name Air We Breathe 
Funder
Dates 2016
Themes Health
Outputs Radio drama, public service announcements, capacity building
Broadcast partners Oromia Radio and Television Organisation, Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation

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