Africa-Press – Cape verde. The Minister of Health pointed out today that data from the Second Survey of Non-Communicable Diseases (IDNT II 2020) reflects Cape Verde’s struggles and challenge, addressing the collective as an imperative factor to improve statistics.Filomena Gonçalves spoke at the launching ceremony of the Year of Mental Health under the motto “Mental health, priority and commitment for all”, which took place in the city of Praia, highlighting that chemical dependency, abusive violence and harassment are the main causes of depression, affecting different age groups and social strata.
As he recalled, data from the latest national survey of risk factors for non-communicable diseases revealed that 1.7 percent (%) of the adult population has been using the subsidy, with a higher incidence among women, around 2.6%.
An even more worrying reality, he said, when considering that 3.3% of the adult population has seriously considered suicide at some point in the last year and of those who attempted, only 36% sought medical care, thus highlighting the cry of warning about the state of mental health in the country and the significant gap in support services.
According to the minister, Cape Verde faces unique challenges with at least one death per week due to suicide, this is because 9.6% of the population smokes tobacco, 45% consumes alcohol, a consumption that reaches 16.3% and 57.5% respectively in Saint Vincent.
“Our population spends around 120 minutes in sedentary activities daily, contrasting with 54.6 minutes dedicated to physical activity. This sedentary lifestyle is an additional risk factor for mental and physical health problems,” he warned, highlighting that the year 2024 symbolizes renewed commitment in this matter.
For Filomena Gonçalves, it is imperative to work on the problem collectively, in close coordination with families, communities, schools and religious institutions in creating a support network against the permanence of stigma in society.
The Prime Minister, Ulisses Correia e Silva, who presided over the launch of the initiative, explained that the Government declared the year of mental health in order to give more visibility to the disease, develop a “strong social awareness”, promote healthy health prevention and reinforce policies and initiatives aimed at improving it.
Ulisses Correia e Silva took the opportunity to praise the “Healthy Life” campaigns promoted by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that “play an important and impactful role” in changing people’s behavior.
“Social stigmas associated with mental health exist in various parts of the world and must be tackled head-on because they are constraints to seeking help, seeking specialized services and causing discrimination and problems of social integration,” he highlighted.
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