Templeton World Charity Foundation has invested $1 million in the Shamiri Institute, a mental health company, to combat the pandemic of mental health in Kenya and across Africa.
For the institute, this means that they may develop strategies for promoting their character-based data-driven interventions to African adolescents and examine the long-term health objectives and consequences of these initiatives.
Founded by Tom Osborn and Katherine Venturo-Coberly, the Shamiri Institute is using social research data to address mental health issues amongst teenagers.
The firm was founded in 2018 and has been working in Kenya to conceptualize and implement ways to alleviate the youth crisis, with the ultimate goal of building a brighter future for this demographic group.
Templeton World Charity Foundation donations will be utilized to increase Shamiri Institute’s effect across the African continent.
According to the UN, about 60% of Africa’s population is under the age of 25, making Africa the world’s youngest continent.
With around 6–8 percent of youth diagnosed with depression, the continent struggles with insufficient mental health literacy, stigma surrounding mental health disorders, and underdeveloped healthcare infrastructure.
“In recent years, our work has been influenced by the crisis. We questioned ourselves what opportunities lie within the big problem,” said Osborn.
“Templeton’s sponsorship will enable us to expand our actions outside Kenya. Additionally, we would like to effectively begin measuring our influence on improving young people’s mental health through this process.”
Mental health is becoming more of a problem in Kenya. According to the Shamiri Institute, there is a particularly high prevalence of depression among young people, with one out of every four persons seeking medical care in the nation suffering from a mental health ailment.
According to the institute, depression is rampant in the nation, and many individuals turn to alcohol and other narcotics to cope, exacerbating the situation.
And, while the country has not necessarily committed a budget to address the problem, it has established a mental health task group that is working on a variety of changes to strengthen the country’s response to the problem.
Nearly 60% of Africa’s population is under 25, making it the world’s youngest continent, according to the UN. Furthermore, with a depression prevalence of 6–8%, Africa is beset by a lack of mental health education, a negative social stigma associated with mental illness, and a lack of adequate health care infrastructures.
45 percent of the burden of disease among youth is due to the global mental health issue. It is even worse in Africa, which has some of the highest rates of youth unemployment and the worst healthcare quality.
