Mental health experts and advocates have called for urgent national attention to the mental well-being of young people, warning that neglecting their struggles could have devastating consequences later in life.

Professor Emmanuel Nii-Boye Quarshie, President of the Association for Suicide Prevention Ghana (GASP), said adolescents and young adults remained the most vulnerable group globally when it came to deaths by suicide, driven by a complex mix of social, economic and personal pressures.

Prof Quarshie made the call on the sidelines of a capacity-building workshop for media practitioners held in Accra on Friday. The workshop was organised by GASP in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO) Ghana Office and the Department of Psychology of the University of Ghana.

The programme sought to raise awareness of the WHO guidelines on suicide reporting and to educate participants on the application of localised reporting guidelines within the Ghanaian context.

Prof Quarshie noted that while bullying existed in earlier generations, today’s youth faced additional challenges such as cyberbullying and the pressure of unrealistic lifestyles portrayed on social media.

“Many of our young people are losing their self-esteem and sense of self-worth in silence, particularly in the virtual world,” he said.
“Unaddressed mental health challenges in the early years often persist into adulthood with serious consequences.”

He explained that evidence showed most mental health conditions began early in life and that failure to intervene promptly could lead to crises marked by hopelessness and loss of meaning, sometimes with fatal outcomes.

Worsening economic conditions, unemployment, poverty and difficulties in accessing education were additional stressors confronting young people, he said, adding that even families benefiting from the Free Senior High School programme still struggled to provide basic support for their children.

Prof Quarshie therefore called for deliberate efforts to build resilience, strengthen life-skills education and introduce safeguards within the digital space to protect young people’s mental health.

Sharing a personal account, Dr Pokua Osei Yeboah, who lost her son to suicide, stressed the importance of open and consistent communication between parents and their children.

She said many parents failed to engage their children in honest one-on-one conversations, often missing warning signs until it was too late.

“Checking in is very important. We need to ask questions about their lives, their struggles, school, relationships and whether they are being bullied,” Dr Osei Yeboah said.
“Parents should also ask directly if their children are having thoughts of harming themselves.”

She admitted that cultural attitudes and traditional parenting styles sometimes discouraged openness, causing emotional distress to be dismissed as weakness.

“Looking back, I didn’t see the danger coming, even though his struggles started when he was an adolescent. He never shared, and I never pushed the conversation. I have learnt my lessons after the passing of my son,” she said.

Dr Osei Yeboah called for increased public education, improved funding for mental health services, reduced stigma and the establishment of a national crisis hotline similar to emergency services available in other countries.

Dr Johnny Andoh-Arthur, Secretary to GASP, highlighted the lack of reliable national data on suicide and attempted self-harm, noting that most available figures were derived from media and police reports.

“As a country, we do not have a dedicated system for recording these cases, and without data, prevention becomes difficult,” he stated.

Dr Andoh-Arthur noted that although Ghana decriminalised attempted suicide about two to three years ago, implementation remained incomplete without adequate investment in mental health services.

He expressed concern that less than two per cent of the national health budget was allocated to mental health, limiting the ability of health facilities to provide timely and effective support.

He stressed that with the decriminalisation, people in crisis should be encouraged to seek help without fear of punishment, which would require well-resourced facilities, trained professionals and accessible services.

While the decriminalisation marked important progress, he said sustained national commitment, data-driven policies and compassionate support systems were necessary to protect young people’s mental health and prevent avoidable loss of life. — GNA

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Mental health experts warn of rising risks among Ghana’s youth, calling for urgent national action, better funding, data systems and support services to prevent suicide and protect young lives.