Hailed as ‘‘By Ethiopians, for Ethiopians“, the Guardian Development’s team has, for the first time, gone behind the scenes of Yegna to document how it’s making a real impact on the lives of millions of girls, boys and communities across the country.
Yegna uses storytelling and music across radio, TV and digital channels to reposition how girls see themselves and how society perceives what girls can achieve. The Guardian’s film features two Yegna fans – Selam and Aster, and their friends – who listen to Yegna’s music and radio drama to inspire them and teach them how to deal with everyday problems, like sexual harassment.
Most of the time women are considered inferior. So Yegna builds their confidence and teaches them to get out of the home and to work, like men do.Aster
Shak[ing] off the ‘Ethiopian Spice Girls’ tag, the Yegna cast explains what Yegna has meant to them: “Many people think of us as singers, many people think of us as actors, but personally I believe that we are teachers.”
Since launching in 2013, Yegna has reached millions of young people and is provoking positive conversations about the important role girls can play in Ethiopian society.
Learn more about Yegna.
Watch The Guardian video
Yegna: the all-female band bring girl power to Ethiopia