According to the Mental Health Federation of South Africa, more than 17 million people in South Africa experience depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or substance abuse. These illnesses round out the top five mental health diagnoses.

This means that approximately 30% of South Africans will experience some form of mental illness or disorder during their lifetime – with depression being the most dominant.

Dr Nicola Plastow notes that approximately one in three South Africans will experience one of the following mental health problems in their lifetime: anxiety disorders; mood disorders; impulse control disorders (intermittent explosive disorder); substance use disorders (alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence, substance abuse, substance dependence).

And South Africans are much more likely to experience a mental health problem than those living in other African countries such as Nigeria and Kenya. In short, mental health is a matter for serious concern in South Africa, and it is not at all clear that it enjoys the policy and legislative priority that it should.

Report by the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference Parliamentary Liaison Office