The Africa CDC Mental Health Leadership Programme

In the face of significant under-provision of mental health services across Africa, the proposed five-year Africa CDC Mental Health Leadership Programme puts into practice the workforce strengthening and advocacy aspects of Africa CDC’s Non-Communicable Diseases, Injuries Prevention and Control, and Mental Health Promotion Strategy (2022 – 2026).

The programme embeds a mental health track within two key public health leadership initiatives (the Kofi Annan Global Health Leadership Programme, and the Field Epidemiology Training Programme), while also supporting and replicating university based short courses for public health professionals.

By strengthening a cadre of public health professionals from across Africa, who are capacitated in mental health theory, practice and leadership, this project will help build a critical mass for advocacy. But change cannot and should not be delivered within the public health silo alone.

The proposed programme will also build the capacity of people with lived experience of mental ill health, and mental health focused CSOs, and will strengthen the mutual networks between practitioners and activists to collectively enable them to push for the higher prioritisation of mental health in Africa.