By Aminata Kuyateh
The Ministry of Health on Thursday launched the National Technical Working Group on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support [MHPSS], moving to end fragmentation and put mental health at the centre of national health and economic priorities.
The launch comes as new data reveals mental health conditions and suicide cost The Gambia D768 million annually — about 0.5% of GDP — with 89% of the loss coming from lost productivity, absenteeism and premature death.
The inaugural meeting brought together government, National Assembly, UN agencies, civil society, professional bodies, academia and development partners to coordinate action and close service gaps.
Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Lamin Dampha, said progress has been made but the scale of need demands urgency.
In 2023–2024 more than 200 non-specialist health workers were trained in WHO’s mhGAP. In April 2026, 20 more clinicians were trained under the EU-funded, IOM-implemented STRONG Project. 30 traditional and faith-based healers have also been trained on psychosocial support and referrals, out of a target of 100 nationwide.
“The 2024 Mental Health Investment Case is clear,” Dampha said. “We are losing D768 million a year not to hospital bills, but to people unable to work, to families broken, and to lives lost too soon.”
He added that The Gambia is one of only three countries globally receiving WHO support to strengthen dementia response — and the only African country in the initiative.
The Ministry and IOM are working to revitalise the Community Mental Health Programme, suspended since 2017. A new Diploma in Mental Health and Psychosocial Support is also being established to deploy trained workers to communities.
A National Mental Health Strategic Plan to implement the 2025–2035 Policy is in development.
Most critically, the Ministry is finalising a new Mental Health Bill to repeal the colonial-era Lunatics Detention Act of 1917.
“The new law will establish a modern, rights-based framework and protect the dignity of people living with mental health conditions,” Dampha said.
Mam Jarra Marega, Programme Manager, National Mental Health Programme, said the TWG must solve a basic failure: families don’t know where to seek help.
“People bounce between traditional healers, pharmacies, clinics and hospitals before getting care,” Marega said. “Success will be measured by this: young people get help before crisis, families know where to go, and services are available close to home without stigma.”
EU Deputy Head of Mission Raphaël Brigandi said mental health is not a secondary issue. Citing WHO data that 1.2 billion people globally live with mental health conditions, he said The Gambia must act now, including for those affected by migration and reintegration. “The establishment of this Working Group is a shared commitment,” Brigandi said.