In order to expand the growing awareness on sexual reproductive health and rights, Health Development Initiative has enhanced the use of digital innovation to entertain as well as teach the community on reproductive health.
Through its new drama series, ‘Ingamba,’ that is aired on HDI TV parents and their children have an opportunity to access accurate information about sexual and reproductive health and rights.
Béatrice Mutesi, the script writer and director of this series at HDI, says the inspiration behind the drama roots in the fact that reproductive health is still a part of life that seems to be neglected in Rwandan society, mainly because sex education is still a taboo in Rwandan culture.
"Parents and caregivers can’t easily conduct sexual talk with their children. On the other hand, young people also don’t have space for accurate information in a friendly way such as a series, where they can laugh and see people they can relate with,” she says.
The reason they chose drama as a new platform was to engage the public in a way that was entertaining yet educating at the same time.
"People usually like characters in films, they try to compare them with the life they are living and can also relate to their environment and lifestyle.”
Muhoza, the main character, acts as a 12-year-old who doesn’t have information about contraception. Her mother never talks to her about any sexual education yet she is always opposing her husband who is willing to, but limited by the fact that he is abroad for work.
What her mother doesn’t understand is how this can push Muhoza into unwanted sexual activity, unwanted pregnancy and unsafe abortion that can claim her life. On the other hand, there is a well-informed couple of Fofo and Clapton, both of whom are young adults who are sexually active. They always go to the hospital together to learn more about suitable contraceptive methods that can help them avoid unwanted pregnancies.
When young people see these characters, Mutesi believes they relate with their social lives, get information and avoid consequences that come with engaging in unprotected sex.
Juliette Karitanyi, the director of communications at HDI, says the main purpose of this series is to provide reproductive health and rights information to the public, but also to help parents educate their children about SRHR and for the youth to access accurate information about sexual reproductive health and rights.
"Sex talk within the family is still a taboo in most parts of Africa, especially in Rwanda. When HDI avails this kind of information through drama, it relieves the weight for some parents who consider this subject a taboo. This helps their children have access to SRHR information, and young people to make well-informed decisions regarding their sexual relations,” she notes.
The series started airing on HDI’s YouTube channel in September last year.
For the months it has been airing, Karitanyi says they see the engagement of young people in the comment sections, who usually send positive feedback of accessing information they didn’t know but are now learning through Ingamba series.
"The first episode has been viewed by more than 6,000 people, this shows positive feedback and gives us the courage to keep producing more episodes. We have already produced 17 videos. Others reach out through the HDI toll free number and every week, the hotline receives between 500-700 calls from young people asking questions related to SRHR. It is a space that we would like to continue to explore since that’s where young people are and we want to find them where they are and empower them.”
The organisation’s YouTube channel has since grown. The HDI YouTube channel started in December 2019 but has over 7,000 subscribers now.
The channel provides more information on health, for example, it shares information on health education, involvement of male parents in fighting discrimination done to teen mothers, covid-19 prevention videos, and ‘Ask your doctor’ segment-where experienced doctors answer questions that people leave in the comment section and more.