Theatre as a Campaign Tool against Drug and Substance Abuse in Selected Kenyan Schools Plays
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Date
2020-12-31
Authors
Tsikhungu, Shikuku
Minishi, Oliver
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
African Journal of Alcohol & Drug Abuse
Abstract
The Kenya National Drama Festival
Committee, the organizers of the National
Schools, Colleges and Universities Drama
Festival usually enters into a sponsorship
agreement with other institutions to help
in disseminating certain messages through
drama. One of these institutions is the
National Agency for the Campaign Against
Drug and Substance and Alcohol Abuse
(NACADA). NACADA has sponsored a
number of editions of the Festival in the hope
that participants will be sensitized through
the performances on the need for demand
reduction and supply suppression of alcohol
and drugs use. The event targets mostly the
youth in Kenya who are said to be at the
highest risk of becoming victims of drug
and substance abuse. The youth are mostly
in schools. This article interrogates some
of the plays presented at this festival and
their agency at advocating the NACADA
course. Specifically, it seeks to respond
to the following questions; how are the
plays structured to communicate supply
suppression and demand reduction? What
qualities are assigned to characters so that
they act as campaign agents and how are
the plays designed to signpost the dangers
of drugs and substance abuse? How have
they been used for supply suppression and
demand reduction of consumption of drug
and substances? What are the challenges
that this sensitization campaign faced and
how can they be overcomed?
Description
A Research Article in the African Journal of Alcohol & Drug Abuse
Keywords
Drugs and substance Use, Youth, Theatre arts, Plays, Demand Reduction
Citation
Tsikhungu, E.S., & Minishi, O. (2020). Theatre as a Campaign Tool against Drug and Substance Abuse in Selected Kenyan Schools Plays. AJADA (African Journal of Alcohol & Drug Abuse. 4(1), 50-58