Breaking the Silence: Rwandan Youth Leading the Mental Health Movement
Rwanda has faced some tough challenges when it comes to mental health. From the aftermath of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, to daily life stressors, and even the AIDS pandemic, mental health disorders have become more prevalent, especially among young people. Sadly, the older generation's trauma often means young people's mental health is not taken seriously.
But the numbers speak for themselves: depression is affecting one in four youth, and 13% of young Rwandans, ages 12-17, are experiencing suicidal thoughts or behaviour. Unfortunately, mental health literacy and awareness are low, and many feel shame in seeking help.
YLabs’ Tegura Ejo Heza initiative, led by Rwandan youth, is a combined digital platform and in-person approach, where young people help their peers talk about mental illnesses and provide tips for maintaining wellbeing.
Despite the many obstacles facing them, youth have taken a stand. Young leaders in the program, known as Wellness Warriors, approached this heavy topic with passion and have already made a profound impact for their peers in three ways:
1. Peer-to-Peer Support
By sharing stories and normalizing mental illness, peer-to-peer support is leading to more open conversations about mental health.
Through the peer-to-peer support system known as Turi Kumwe (Kinyarwanda for “we are together”), the Wellness Warriors are trained to become mental health advocates for their peers. They help their peers talk about mental illnesses and provide tips for maintaining healthy well-being. These peer-to-peer conversations often strengthen the relationships with their peers, as Wellness Warriors enjoy the responsibility of teaching their friends about mental health and seeing the positive feedback. By sharing stories and normalizing mental illness, peer-to-peer support is leading to more open conversations about mental health. Youth understand that they may not have all the answers, but they can refer their peers to mental health services
2. Digital Learning and Self-Care Platform
It’s a place where young people can find reliable information about mental health and chat with experts for free.
In-person conversations aren’t for everyone, which is why the Wellness Warriors are also involved in the digital aspect of Tegura Ejo Heza, a digital self-care platform called Bohoka. It’s a place where young people can find reliable information about mental health and chat with experts for free. Given the online anonymity, youth feel comfortable sharing their experiences on Bohoka.
The platform also provides tips to maintain mental wellbeing along with a list of nearby health facilities and online services offered for free or payment. Wellness Warriors encourage their peers to utilize the platform, show them how to navigate it, and answer their questions. And guess what? More than 6,000 Bohoka website sessions have been logged, including 1,000 chatbot visits and 2,000+ views of the mental health knowledge page. The more that youth see resources being utilized by peers, the more encouragement they have to use the resources themselves.
3. Launching the Program
This wasn't just a party, it was a chance [for the Wellness Warriors] to raise awareness about mental health among their peers.
On International Youth Day, the Wellness Warriors took the reins and launched their program in style. Armed with creative promotional materials, these young leaders organized a party to remember, featuring a mix of traditional and modern dance, modeling, and even some sweet skateboarding. Plays and poems demonstrating how the Bohoka platform and Turi Kumwe events could improve mental health were developed by Wellness Warrior. But this wasn't just a party, it was a chance to raise awareness about mental health among their peers.
During the events, Wellness Warriors shared tablets with attendees to access the Bohoka platform, distributed flyers with helpful tips and resources to take home, and held question-and-answer sessions. And boy, did they make an impact!
Over 1,500 young people showed up, proving that when it comes to making a difference, youth are definitely in the driver's seat.
This initiative has not ended here: after the launch event, Wellness Warriors arranged and conducted more sessions of Turi Kumwe events where each of the 12 Wellness Warriors invited 20-30 of their peers at the youth center for a one-hour workshop discussion about mental health. These events have been attended by more than 600 youth in total.
Final Reflections
As experts of their own experiences, young people have a unique perspective on life and know what can be tough to handle in their day-to-day life. It's important to involve them in creating solutions that affect them. That's exactly what YLabs did with Tegura Ejo Heza, and the results were amazing.
The Wellness Warriors didn't just meet our expectations – they exceeded them. They took charge and worked together to make things better for their peers, especially when it comes to mental health. We can't wait to see what these talented young leaders will do next!
Interested in learning more about YLabs’ work to help youth lead the way? Check out our projects!
