A mental disorder is suffering or a disability associated with an abnormal pattern of thought, behavior, or emotional state that is not socially or developmentally normal. Mental disorders are generally defined by a combination of feelings, behaviors, and experiences that interferes with a person’s ability to function in daily activities of life (Jenkins & McCulloch, 2002). This definition implies three things. First, these patterns of behavior are atypical of the common behavior in society. Secondly, the individual suffering from this disorder expresses negative emotions and reactions. Thirdly, as a result of this disorder, the individual’s performance in everyday activities is interrupted (Ehiemua, 2014).

Globally, over 320 million people suffer from depression, and about 9% of them live in Africa, as determined by the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates for 2017. Furthermore, it was revealed that out of 37 studies in Sub-Saharan Africa involving 97,616 adolescents published between 2008 and 2020, 26.9% had depression, 29.8% had anxiety disorders, 40.8% had emotional and behavioral problems, and 21.5% had PTSD.

Despite the prevalence of mental disorders in Africa, it however remains a heavily stigmatized area of health. This is chiefly because of the high level of ignorance surrounding the nature and factors responsible for mental health disorders. As a result, the sufferers of mental disorders are faced with discrimination, abuse, and violation of their fundamental human rights (Ehiemua, 2014). The common mental disorders in Africa are briefly discussed below.

Common Mental Disorders

Depression – depression is one of the most common mental disorders in Africa. Sufferers experience extremely low interest in normal daily activities, low mood, hopelessness, lack of concentration, and a problem with appetite and sleep amongst other symptoms. It is an established fact that a significant number of depressed people live in Africa (Jörns-Presentati et al., 2021).

Anxiety – this is a type of disorder that manifests itself in form of excessive worry, and fear that hinders one’s ability to engage in daily activities. There is overwhelming evidence to prove the existence of anxiety disorder in Africa. A particular study reported the incidence of anxiety among postnatal women in South-East Nigeria. A more recent report also indicated the presence of anxiety with COVID 19 being identified as a trigger among men and women. The trend also runs in other parts of Africa, with a particular projection estimating over 11, 000 people to receive treatment for anxiety disorder.

Posttraumatic stress disorder – posttraumatic stress disorder is experienced when a person fails to recover from a terrible experience or event such as disaster, an assault, death of a loved one, etc. common symptoms include nightmares, low mood, evading situations that might bring back memories of the event. Due to the constant unrest in most parts of Africa, posttraumatic stress disorder is on the high side as evident in the works of Aluh, Okoro, and Zimboh (2020); Sekoni, Mall, and Christofides (2021), Ng, Stevenson, Kalapurakkel, Hanlon, Seedat, Harerimana, Chiliza and Koenen (2020).

Schizophrenia – a more severe mental disorder common in Africa is schizophrenia. This disorder is characterized by impairments in the perception of reality and abnormal behavioral patterns. Hallucinations and delusions are common among sufferers. Schizophrenia is one of the most common disorders in Africa with over 100 thousand cases reported in a year in Nigeria. 

Suicidal ideation – suicidal ideation involves thinking about ending one’s life. It may be a wish or feeling that death would be nice or being alive isn’t worth it. It can be further expressed in the consideration of taking one’s own life. Suicidal thoughts and the accompanying behavior such as suicide are common in Africa as incidences of suicide and the attempt abound (Sonia et al., 2020) implying the estimation that over 34, 000 people die yearly in Africa on account of suicide. 

Risk Factors

It is important to note that these disorders could be attributed to certain risk factors arising from the African environment. Some of these contributing factors from African society include.

Poverty – poverty in African society contributes a great deal to the onset of mental disorders in Africa. Recognizing the role of poverty, Professor Vikram Patel, a renowned mental health expert at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine maintains that it is undeniable that “social disadvantage” can increase the risk of mental health problems, and that “poverty and mental health are completely intertwined”. As a result, poor people are more likely to develop mental illnesses. On the other hand, those who have pre-existing mental illnesses have a higher chance of being poor because of the inability to engage in productive activities (Ehiemua, 2014). This, therefore, explains part of the reasons for mental disorders in Africa.

Negative experiences during childhood – Another factor that could account for mental disorders in African society is negative childhood experiences. Children of parents who are criminally negligent or ill with mental illness, as well as those who misuse substances, have a higher chance of developing mental health problems at the adult stage.

Abuse of substance – misuse of substances and illicit drugs account for mental disorders in Africa. 

HIV/AIDS and another infectious disease – the prevalence of infectious diseases especially HIV/AIDS has been linked to mental illnesses in Africa. Certain studies have linked HIV/AIDS to trauma, anxiety, and depression (Kinyanda et al., 2018; Ciesla et al., 2001; Yeneabat et al., 2017).

Violence and armed conflict – recurrent violence and armed conflict in Africa account for rising cases of mental health problems in the continent. A particular report from the commonwealth indicated a high rate of mental health problems owing to violence and armed conflict in the continent.

Way Forward

Considering the above causative factors way forward would include the following:

Sensitization – there is a need for sensitization on mental health-related issues in Africa. This is particularly important because a significant number of Africans are ignorant of issues relating to mental health. Hence, the high level of stigmatization that goes with mental health (Ehiemua, 2014). Community-based sensitization programs should be encouraged.

Alleviating poverty – there is a link between poverty and mental disorder, therefore stakeholders in Africa need to intensify efforts to alleviate poverty in the continent and not just to pay lips service to that. 

Maintenance of peace and orderliness – as evident in the above discussion, there is a direct link between violence and mental disorder in Africa, hence, there is no better time than now for Africans to unite and address recurrent violence and armed conflict in the continent.

 

The need for counseling – to address the mounting mental health challenges in the continent, there is a need for more counseling services in Africa as the available ones are limited and some are inoperative. More counselors and mental health experts need to be trained. Also, individuals need to be encouraged to utilize counseling services made available because most Africans are yet to realize the importance of counseling in their daily lives.

Africa is faced with mental health challenges like every other continent in the world. However, mental health challenges in Africa could be attributed to certain environmental factors. To tackle mental health challenges therefore would require addressing those environmental factors. While addressing those factors, there is a need to stress the importance of counseling in Africa.