Counties in Kenya have been urged to establish dedicated budget lines for mental health rather than relying on general health allocations. This call was made during a Regional Mental Health Conference in Kisumu, which brought together government officials, civil society organisations, mental health practitioners, and persons with lived experience from Kenya and the region. Stakeholders emphasized that inadequate financing continues to restrict access to services at the community level.
The conference heard that mental health requires a specific, earmarked allocation within county health budgets to effectively support prevention, treatment, response, and follow-up care. Roy Douglas Otieno, executive director of Tinada International Africa, stated that a specific and adequate allocation for mental health is needed, not just increased funding for health in general. He expressed optimism that Kisumu county administration would support the implementation of a new workplace mental health policy developed through multi-stakeholder consultations.
The new workplace mental health policy aims to embed mental health and employee wellbeing into organisational systems through structured prevention, response, safeguarding, and staff support mechanisms. Otieno emphasized that the definition of a workplace must extend beyond formal office settings to encompass all environments where individuals earn a living. He urged employers to integrate mental health into overall staff welfare rather than addressing it reactively after a crisis occurs.
Stakeholders also advocated for increased investment in community-based mental health services, particularly through community health promoters (CHPs). These CHPs serve as the primary link between households and the formal health system. While select CHPs in Kisumu have been trained to identify mental health conditions, conduct basic assessments, and facilitate referrals, training and operational support remain inconsistent across counties.
The national government was urged to cascade standardised training to all CHPs using the official national curriculum. Otieno warned that referral without follow-up care cannot yield results, highlighting the persistent gap between identifying individuals in distress and providing sustained care post-referral. Zeddy Misiga, representative of Icon Data and Learning Labs, stressed the need for robust data to guide mental health planning and resource allocation.
Misiga noted that many grassroots organisations lack the infrastructure and technical expertise required to gather and analyse high-quality data. The organisation is working to generate quality data in the mental health space that can drive decision-making and resource allocation at both county and national levels. Documenting the experiences of persons living with mental health conditions would generate crucial evidence to inform stronger policies and programmes.
The conference concluded that ring-fenced funding, strengthened community-level health services, and reliable data will be vital to shifting mental health care from emergency response to sustained community- and workplace-based care. The stakeholders emphasised the need for enhanced collaboration between governments, civil society, local communities, and individuals with lived experience to address mental health prevention, policy, response, and management.
Key points
- Counties in Kenya are being urged to establish dedicated budget lines for mental health.
- Stakeholders warn that inadequate financing restricts access to mental health services at the community level.
- A new workplace mental health policy aims to embed mental health and employee wellbeing into organisational systems.
