A Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Ibadan, Professor Olayinka Olusola Omigbodun, FAS, has submitted that the mental well-being of the large population of young people in Nigeria forms the foundation of national progress.
She made this submission while delivering the 592nd Inaugural Lecture of the University of Ibadan on behalf of the Faculty of Clinical Sciences.
The title of the lecture was: “Our Children’s Mental Health, Our Nation’s Wealth.”
Professor Omigbodun asserted that an investment and deployment of resources in the development of the mental health of young people and brain capital of children and adolescents should be prioritized because mental health is a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, work productively, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.
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She stated that with Africa’s youthful population growing rapidly, the need for clear policies and accessible mental health services for children has never been more urgent, reiterating that an investment in children’s mental health today will determine the human capital of tomorrow.
Lamenting the growing presence of street children who beg for alms, hawk and engage in other activities to support themselves and their families which invariably leads to mental health issues, she advised that the role of family stability in the mental health of children should be brought to the fore in every location where children are found and systems should be put in place to ensure that their mental health is promoted.
Besides the presence of street children, which, according to her, is peculiar to southwestern Nigeria, the inaugural lecturer disclosed that the phenomenon of Almajiri children found in parts of northern Nigeria is also a disturbing reality.
She warned that the exposure of children to the different levels of maltreatment set the stage for a gloomy future because they lead to dysfunctional emotional regulation, numbness, suppression, impulsiveness, excessive arousal, aggressive feelings and irritability, further leading to social problems in the children.
Adding that child maltreatment causes functional and anatomical changes in the prefrontal cortex and impair executive functioning, which impacts the ability to plan, decision making, working memory and inhibitory processes, she also cautioned that if this trend continues in our nation, our national wealth will be destroyed.
Professor Omigbodun acknowledged the challenges of youngsters living through the realities of family, school, faith, poverty, trauma and hope with hidden burdens of hunger, violence, neglect, despair leading to high rates of depression, suicidal thoughts and risky behaviours.
She expressed concern that most mental disorders (75%) that persist into adult life first manifest between the ages of 12 and 24.
She called for an aggressive move for education and creation of awareness against cultural and religious practices that are abusive, traumatic and damaging to the mental and physical health of children, that are still prevalent in our communities, with consequences to deter the continued practice of such.
The Don added that all child and adolescent health programmes should have a clear component on mental health because there is no health without mental health.
She advised that cultural practices that enhance the mental health of children and adolescents should be identified, with massive efforts to create awareness and educate communities on how to utilize these to grow our nation’s wealth.
The lecturer proposed that specialist staff should work as trainers, supervisors, clinicians, and researchers across the various sectors of healthcare for economy, efficiency, and effectiveness.
The Inaugural Lecture was the fifteenth in the series for the 2024/2025 academic session.
