Our thoughts...
Read our thoughts and have your say below.

Upon completing another round of scheduled consulations with various organiations in the Upper West Region, mostly with the Wa Metropolis, I heaved a sigh not of relief. It was a sigh of an anticipated optimism of a strong group of organisations that will put mental health more forcefully on the development agenda of Upper West Region, the poorest region in Ghana.

The consultations were with various local NGOs and some decentalised government departments. We were meeting them to get their support to include mentally ill people and their carers in their programmes so that mentally ill people's basic needs would be satisifed and their fundamental human rights realised. This is fulfilling the call that mentally ill people made to us and other partner organisatations in a series of consultation meetings. They identified that they need to be supported in representing themselves; through articulating their needs and aspirations other organisations will begin to appreciate them and their problems. Once they start to be recognised, they can work together to improve their lives.

Not only were the organisations that we visited willing to be involved but they were also happy to explain ways by which they could play a part. This is a positive step in our efforts towards building an alliance for mental health and development in the region. As well as the individual efforts by the organisations like the ones I visited, our work will be strengthened by collective action for and with mentally ill people and their carers and families.

Firstly, however, the needs of these organisations are more fundamental. To help them to work with mentally ill people we need to train them in the Model for Mental Health and Development (BasicNeeds' approach to working with mentally ill people) and orientation to basic psychiatry. These two basic packages will make a lot of difference on the efforts of these organisations. It is gratifying to see such a diverse group of organisations with a willingness to do something for mentally ill people under their own visions and missions.