My SOS &Utopia onTop Challenges Facing Youths

I remember waking up at crack of dawn, still feeling giddy and barely unable to keep my eyes open. I walk towards the kitchen to prepare breakfast, holding my transistor radio ( I have this ritual of listening to radio, trust me, radio is a great companion for typical Hausa-Fulani folks, especially herdsmen from Northern Nigeria; I am proud to share that heritage). I tuned to my favorite stations in excitement despite being shaken by the early morning cold, the news headlines and heated commentaries make me come alive. 

I did not see this heart-wrenching news item coming; "26 Young Nigerian Women Found Dead in Mediterranean Sea"-their bodies were found floating by the Spanish Navy on Friday. The suspicion was that they were sexually abused and murdered. The Italian media reports that their estimated ages is 14-18; “It is a tragedy for mankind”-Salvatore Malfi, prefect port city Salerno, where the bodies in the central Mediterranean. Would you like to know the reaction of the Nigerian government? Wait for it, you will find it interesting. 

I fell into a state of despondency after hearing this: “For Nigerian girls, it is pretty standard, the issue of being trafficked, It is a regional network, unfortunately. I have seen younger than 14, and they were alone and from Nigeria.”-MarcoRotunn; UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Italy. The remarks of the deputy Senate President, Mr Ike Ekweremadu, caught my attention; “Government owed citizens of Nigeria the responsibility to provide the basic needs of life. We must not fail on this responsibility”. The Federal Government is currently raising dust over how the 26 dead migrants were buried in Italy without any Nigerian representative.

 My Emergency SOS on Adolescents and Young People 

Aren’t all these legislative/executive proclamations ironical? What happened to the 2016 and 2016 budgetary allocations; does that mean these “basic needs” of Nigerian youth are not included? Is policy direction /lack of strategic policies and non-implementation the root cause of poor economic performance and poor mental health status? Why is the Nigeria Mental Health Bill yet to be passed into law, 13 years after being introduced to the National Assembly? 

I keep asking myself when will these “excellent” policies/statements /proclamations translate into improved health budgets or action (incorporating mental health services into mainstream primary healthcare) to make changes required if women are to contribute effectively to Nigeria’s development? 

Nigeria’s 80.2 million women and girls have significantly worse life chances than men and also their sisters in comparable societies. Violence compounds and reinforces this disadvantage and exclusion-British Council gender inequality report-2012. 
As a Psychologist, mental health and advocate, I am using this piece to send an Emergency SOS* (Save our Soul) signal on the health of these vulnerable groups-in particular Child and Adolescents Mental Health (CAMH). Yes, I said CAMH. I would not be surprised if some folks are just hearing those words for the first time! Can you walk with me to see where I am heading? Great. 
*Interestingly, the term SOS (Save Our Souls) became the worldwide standard distress signal (particularly in maritime use) on 1 July 1908.  It has since entered the awareness of those who are unlikely ever to summon help at sea –appearing in varied contexts.

Nigeria is a key stakeholder on the Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health (2016–2030) which identifies adolescents as being central to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). At the Federal level, where are we on the “Every Woman Every Child movement”?; - a platform emphasizing the importance of measures to help all women, children &adolescents to realize their rights and full potential for health and well-being. These measures include policies &programmes for early childhood development &adolescent health. Removing barriers – such as those to CAMH problems, gender-equality, women’s socioeconomic and political participation are also key measures. 

Barriers to Nigeria Child and Adolescents Mental Health 

In my quest to lend a voice on CAMH problems, I contacted Olayinka Atilola (CAMH researcher &advocate; Department of Behavioural Medicine, Lagos State University College of Medicine). He said there is severe dearth of CAMH policy/strategy to respond to the situation despite realities pointing to a potential risk for explosion in the prevalence of CAMH problems. CAMH epidemiological data is limited. 

Other key barriers include; (a)Poor mental literacy in general; (b)Lack of and the poor conceptualization of the scanty CAMH issues policies; (c)Ignorance and neglect of CAMH issues by policy makers; (d)Ignorance and neglect of CAMH issues by policy makers; (e)Poor resource capacity /few CAMH professionals; (f)Lack of CAMH centres in most psychiatric hospitals and (g) Pediatric facilities in the country; (h)Complete neglect of the most vulnerable and difficult to reach children (such as those within social welfare juvenile and justice settings.

 Can you imagine the impact of these barriers on the baseline resilience/mental health reserves of children (especially girls) in connection to the North-East security crisis? Child and adolescent mental health is defined as the capacity to achieve and maintain optimal psychological functioning and well being. It is directly related to the level reached and competence achieved in psychological and social functioning-(WHO). 

Top Health Challenges Facing Youth 

Key Facts; (1) Half of all mental health disorders in adulthood appear to start by age 14, but most cases are undetected and untreated; (2) Depression is the top cause of illness and disability among adolescents and suicide is the third cause of death; (3) HIV, suicide, alcohol, drug use, early pregnancy and childbirth and interpersonal violence are other main causes of adolescent deaths; (4) Violence, poverty, humiliation and feeling devalued can increase the risk of developing mental health problems- Source- WHO. 

I give credits to development stakeholders at the international, national and community levels spearheading maternal and child health in Nigeria. However, mental health issues cannot be considered in isolation from other areas of development (education, economic empowerment, emergency responses and human rights capacity building). CAMH problems are yet to be given priority in Nigeria, as child health initiatives and policies are still geared largely towards the prevention and management of the so-called childhood killer disease, almost to the exclusion of CAMH issues (Omigbodun, 2009). So what issues are at stake? 

CAMH and socio-political determinants are crucial to the survival of Nigerian children, girls and women. How do I mean? 

Poverty, low human development capacity and a large child population set the stage for poor physical, social and mental health outcomes for children. Given such difficult circumstances as; the North-East security crisis, child trafficking/labor, child abuse, prostitution, street living, child marriage; children will suffer from preventable mental health problems while those in need of curative services may not get it. Thus, constituting a major social and economic burden on families and the society.

My Utopian Views/MindTopia on Mental Health in Nigeria 

  1. Increased mental health funding to meet the AU, 2001 “Abuja declaration”
  2. Scale-up of community based preventive treatment interventions
  3. CAMH centres with up-to-date facilities for restorative treatment
  4. Mental care services in primary health care facilities
  5. A cost effective primary mental healthcare system/cost burden to be progressive (i.e. rich people pay more
  6. Pediatrics/health workers equipped to deal with common CAMH problems
  7. Ratio of CAMH professionals to be 1 to 5 patients
  8. Create interest and awareness in identifying the source mental health problems
  9. Availability of epidemiology data for monitoring spread of risks factors (environment/biological)
  10. Above all, to see a system that ensures everyone experiencing mental health problems is not discriminated against, gets support from family and relevant government agencies. 
Now those are my #MindTopia on #9jaMindWorks What’s your Utopian Future? Why not drop your comments? 

Anthonia Joyce Ojokojo is a Psychologist and Community development Specialist. She is also a mental health blogger, coach and advocate



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