In September 2024, Ubusha Bami was honoured with the Star Award from Advocate for Youth, a social advocacy organization focused on sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) and multimedia SRHR edutainment. This recognition enabled us to take part in dubbing ten popular SRHR animation videos into two local South African languages: siSwati and Xitsonga.
We chose these languages to best serve our current outreach communities, with most UB programs taking place in Mpumalanga, Lowveld—an area where the population primarily speaks siSwati (27.7%), isiZulu (24.1%), Xitsonga (10.4%), and isiNdebele (10.1%).
Seven young people joined as voiceover artists, working alongside Softstorm pty ltd, a small business media company based in Mpumalanga, Lowveld, which provided recording and video dubbing services.
This project not only helped us develop new skills in video dubbing but also created opportunities for youth empowerment in content creation. As we pursue further video dubbing projects, we aim to include more widely spoken South African languages and recognize the importance of making learning inclusive by adding sign language options for videos. We are also eager to expand our presentations to share relevant, culturally sensitive SRHR lessons with broader audiences. Please contact us if you would like us to present at your school or youth group.
References:
- Video: https://www.youtube.com/@ubushabami
- SA languages image: https://southafrica-info.com/arts-culture/the-languages-of-south-africa/
Ubusha Bami futhi yimi lo – My youth and this is me! © 1 October 2025