Africa-Press – Namibia. Prime Minister Elijah Ngurare has revealed that 2 937 cases of attempted suicide were recorded by the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MoHSS) during the 2023/24 financial year, the highest figure on record.
Ngurare disclosed the statistics on Friday during the commemoration of World Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Month in Windhoek, in a speech delivered on his behalf.
“At the policy level, mental health and suicide prevention must be firmly embedded in our national development agenda, with resources allocated to strengthen services in both urban and rural areas,” he emphasised.
The Prime Minister urged families to create homes where love and support overshadow silence and shame, encouraging those suffering to seek help without fear of judgment.
Ngurare further expressed his desire for all Namibians, regardless of their circumstances, to enjoy the right to mental health and to live with honour, hope, and purpose. He also appealed to communities and faith-based leaders to provide safe spaces where people can seek guidance, solace, and encouragement without fear of stigma.
“Mental well-being must be part of every organisation’s culture,” he stressed, noting that when mental health deteriorates, families are divided, workplaces are weakened, and societies are undermined.
In a speech read on her behalf at the same event, Minister of Health and Social Services Dr Esperance Luvindao reaffirmed the government’s commitment to ensuring accessible and responsive mental health care.
“We affirm our duty to ensure that mental health care is available, accessible and responsive,
especially in times of crisis,” she said.
She further added that “Strengthening psychosocial support, community resilience, and emergency mental health response is crucial to our country and our region.”
Meanwhile, the secretary general of the Namibian Mental Health Association (NAMHA), Deon Baisako, shared his personal testimony as a survivor of severe mental health challenges.
He encouraged those in need to make use of freely available mental health services to find healing.
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