South Sudanese Youth Championing Creative Campaigns In Response To COVID-19

By: Gili Moses*

This blog is published as part of the #KeepMakingArt campaign. The curated series features voices in the arts/culture, education, and social change sectors to capture the deep thinking and innovation occurring as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic.

LT music in the studio recording the corona virus song in kakwa language

Just this week on the 5th of April 2020, South Sudan confirmed its first case of COVID-19 in the country joining the global fight against the coronavirus pandemic. The approach, however, in South Sudan, is very different than in many other countries: youth are championing the fight against the virus.

Young Artists Take the Lead

South Sudanese young people have initiated creative projects which are aimed at creating awareness to the general public on preventive and life saving measures against the virus. Most of these projects are meant to sensitize the local population through creative content in various local languages spoken in South Sudan presented through both audio and video means. So far over ten songs has been recorded, produced, and disseminated in South Sudan to create awareness about the virus. 

Corona - KK all-stars featuring Vinnix HD, Nasty Jay, Maltony and LT music

The Vitality of the Arts During a Pandemic

The arts play a major role in human space every day, but more so especially in times of crisis like this global pandemic. Art, music, dance, and theatre unite us globally towards common goals, which right now in 2020 is to overcome this threat to our health, well-being, and planet by fighting together.

Artists W.J the King, Neetah and McLomex during video shoot of their Corona Virus awareness song

As the world fights to overcome the greatest threats to humanity in this period of time, myriad issues like climate change, locust invasion, and COVID-19, intersect to spark panic among the citizens of the world. In my life time, I have not witnessed such a crisis to see the entire world in a lockdown: no travel across borders, in-country travel bans, public institution of learning closed, cities turning into ghost towns, workplaces on a lockdown, workers to work from home, millions became unemployed due to the crisis, individuals and families in total despair. 

Reflecting Collective Wisdom

In times of crisis, the arts bear witness. When artists engage with their social contexts, their critical role emerges as documenters of social conscience, moral critique, and collective action – their work and our collective wisdom becomes visible.

Jubafest Initiative staff Sarah Hayat in a radio talk show on COVID-19 prevention measures at Advance Youth Radio, Juba South Sudan

Artists provide an outlet for the range of heightened emotions we feel: confusion, frustration, anxiety and hopelessness. Their work helps us process, make meaning, and move our actions toward hope. As we engage in the arts – as everyday artists in our homes and communities (and online through social media) – our arts remind us of life’s joys and the strength and resilience of the human spirit.

Our work in the arts and cultural sector shouldn’t stop due to the circumstance our world is passing through but rather exert more effort, encouraging artists within South Sudan, and around the world, to inspire hope, unify communities, and (right now) create awareness to educate people on preventive measures to fight COVID-19.

What We Are Doing

As such, we at the Jubafest Initiative - a cultural organization operating in South Sudan with thematic areas of arts and culture, traditions and history, creating awareness, promoting cultural diversity to foster coexistence, love, peace, and unity - have launched a new project: “Youth Voices on COVID-19.” 

This project works with young people throughout the region to create awareness about the pandemic, show compassion to each other during this trying time, and preach a message of hope through videos clips from people within and outside of South Sudan. We will focus the videos on how we can

  • Prevent ourselves from an infection from COVID-19;

  • Encourage professionals in the arts and cultural sector to keep on making art regardless of the hard times the world is passing through; and 

  • Send messages to inspire hope to the people during this challenging time.

South Sudanese youth are doing more to inform citizens of the importance of following safety measures to curb the spread of the virus in the country – and they are using their arts, culture, and creativity to do so.

*Gili Moses

Gili Moses is an entrepreneur, community activist and a student at the Catholic University of South Sudan studying Bachelors in Entrepreneurship. He is a young and patriotic South Sudanese who works towards job creation, peace, co-existence and understanding among people South Sudan through the arts and cultural sector.

Gili is the Co-founder of Mcgilmo company limited a local business entity dealing in Fumigation and Pest control services, Cleaning services. He is the founder and the Executive Director of the Jubafest Initiative a cultural oriented organization with thematic areas in Arts & Culture, Awareness, Traditions and heritage. Working to promote and preserve of South Sudan’s cultures, foster peace, unity, and shaping the narrative