Mental health still grossly underfunded but there are glimmers of hope

A StrongMinds mental health facilitator (center) speaks with former patients in Uganda. StrongMinds has treated more than 25,000 Ugandan women for depression with group talk therapy. Photo: Kevin Di Salvo

This was originally published on Global Health TV on February 28, 2018.

The problem with mental health and substance abuse in Africa and other developing countries is not that awareness has not been raised about these huge contributors to the global burden of disability.

Annually since 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) Mental Health Gap Action Programme has been meeting to scale up services for mental, neurological and substance use disorders.

In 2013, the World Health Assembly adopted the WHO’s Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2020, which is designed to provide guidance for national action plans in all resource settings.

And most notably in 2015, world leaders recognized the importance of mental health and substance abuse in the newly minted Sustainable Development Goals. Within Goal 3 (the health goal) of the 17 SDGs, there is a target for mental health and another target for substance abuse. Here are the Goal 3 targets.

So mental health has finally been given a hard-fought and much-deserved seat at the global health table. It just has not been given much money or resources.