While Tanzania’s Prime Minister, Kassim Majaliwa, has urged parents and guardians of children with mental challenges to seek advice from health experts, data shows that the country is underinvesting in mental health services.

Development Diaries reports that Majaiwa urged Tanzanians to seek mental health care from services available in the country during the recent Run4Autism charity run.

The prime minister also called on citizens to stop the stigma against children and people living with autism, mental disorders and intellectual impairment.

Majaliwa further instructed the Ministry of Health to increase diagnostic service centres, especially for early diagnosis of autism and other problems that can be detected when children go to the clinic every month.

According to 2023 expenditure data, the government spent only four percent of the total health expenditure on mental health.

Also, the country has two mental hospitals, five psychiatric units in general hospitals, one forensic inpatient unit, and four residential care facilities, with a total mental health workforce of 278 at a rate per 100,000 population.

To achieve tangible results in improving mental health care services across the country, the government must increase the budget for the sector.

Development Diaries calls on the Tanzanian government to increase its budget for the country’s mental health care services, and create programmes to help educate the citizens on the need for and benefits of accessing mental health services.

Source: Daily News

Photo source: Alex Green