Mindsplace, a technology-enabled mental healthcare company, has called on the Federal Government to decriminalise attempted suicide, saying it should be treated as a health emergency rather than a criminal offence.
The company also urged the government to activate the Mental Health Fund, establish the Department of Mental Health Services and integrate mental healthcare into primary health centres across the country.
It further called for investment in training and retaining mental health professionals, including psychologists, counsellors and psychiatrists.
The founder and Chief Visionary Officer of Mindsplace, Eniola Bello, made the call at the third edition of The Awakening Summit, held to mark World Mental Health Day.
In a statement sent to PUNCH Healthwise, the summit, themed “Let It Out: The Power of Being Heard,” took place at the Nigeria Law School, Victoria Island, Lagos, bringing together mental health professionals, advocates, human resources managers, entrepreneurs, other professionals and students to discuss emotional wellbeing and everyday pressures.
Bello, who convened the summit, said the government needed to address gaps in the implementation of Nigeria’s mental health policies and ensure that people could access appropriate care before their conditions deteriorated.
“Suicide should be treated as a health emergency, not a crime,” Bello said.
She added, “Let us stop waiting for people to fall apart before we ask how they are doing. We are asking Government to activate the Mental Health Fund, set up the Department of Mental Health Services, and publish where the money goes.”
The call comes amid concerns about the implementation of the National Mental Health Act, which became law in January 2023, replacing a colonial-era lunacy law.
The legislation provides a framework for protecting the rights of people with mental health conditions, promoting community-based care and establishing a Department of Mental Health Services and a Mental Health Fund.
However, questions remain about the implementation of the law’s provisions and the proportion of federal health funding allocated to mental healthcare.
According to a 2025 analysis published in the Nigerian Health Journal, federal mental health allocations rose from N23.33bn in 2021 to N88.24bn in 2025.
Despite the increase, the analysis showed that mental health’s share of the federal health budget declined from 3.67 per cent to 3.12 per cent over the period.
Bello said governments, organisations, communities and individuals needed to take mental health more seriously by creating safe spaces where people could discuss their emotional struggles without fear of judgement.
The summit featured keynote presentations, a lived-experience panel titled “What I Could Not Say” and a workplace wellness panel, “Can We Really Speak Out?”, which examined the challenges of discussing mental health in personal and professional settings.
Participants also watched a Nigerian short film, “All About the Numbers,” inspired by true events and exploring workplace burnout, toxic work culture and mental wellbeing.
Serenity Sisterhood Initiatives, a non-governmental organisation that supports women, girls, children and vulnerable persons through advocacy, education, protection and sustainable community development, collaborated with Mindsplace on the summit while Buy Power supported the event.
Mindsplace, which has operated in the mental healthcare sector since 2014, said it had reached more than 500,000 people through its physical programmes, community initiatives and telepsychiatry platform.
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