Charles Ajunwa
Nigerian Mental Health (NMH) has launched Nigeria’s first public-facing Mental Health Policy Commitment Tracker, an accountability platform designed to independently monitor whether mental health policy commitments are translating into measurable action across Nigeria.
A statement said the launch followed an initial public unveiling on May 28, 2026, at the close of Mental Health Awareness Month.
“This intentional timing allowed citizens, practitioners, and civil society organisations to review the platform, contribute grassroots insights, and submit implementation details from their local communities to anchor the tracker’s operational success.
“The tracker comes at a key moment for mental health governance in Nigeria. While the passage of the National Mental Health Act in 2022 marked a historic policy breakthrough, implementation has lagged in key areas. Critical administrative and operational structures, such as the Department of Mental Health mandated by the Act, have yet to be fully established.
“The federal government missed its December 2025 deadline to fully decriminalise attempted suicide, with representatives at the launch indicating a revised target of December 2026.
“There has also been limited action on two new behavioural health policies: the 2023 National Mental Health Policy and the country’s first Suicide Prevention Policy Framework. These gaps reinforce an urgent reality: policy progress without accountability risks leaving millions of Nigerians without meaningful protections or access to care.
“The drive to build the tracker emerged directly during NMH’s support for the development of key mental health policy documents. While drafting these frameworks, it became clear that creating policy is only the first step; the real challenge lies in ensuring execution.
“This process exposed a major structural gap in Nigeria’s mental health ecosystem—the total absence of embedded monitoring and evaluation systems capable of independently measuring implementation.
“Specifically, there was no clarity on who owned specific deliverables, which party was responsible for reporting progress, what data was needed to track it, or how often that information should be collected to accurately assess outcomes.
“While commitments were increasingly being made at both national and sub-national levels, there was simply no infrastructure to verify whether those promises were being fulfilled in practice,” it stated
“Visibility must be matched by measurable execution,” said Chime Asonye, founder of Nigerian Mental Health. “This tracker exists because moving from action to accountability cannot be optional. It ensures mental health commitments are not simply announced but transparently monitored and translated into tangible legal, institutional, and service delivery outcomes,” he added.
The national launch event featured a keynote address from Vivianne Ihekweazu, Managing Director of Nigeria Health Watch, alongside representatives from federal and state governments, the entertainment sector, media houses, and civil society.
Renowned artist and advocate, Hadiza Blell-Olo (Di’ja), also emphasised the need for structural action at the launch, noting that creative advocacy must evolve alongside these policy tools.
“True authenticity means artists and cultural figures must move beyond just talking about mental health. We need to begin actively partnering with professional communities and
systems-building organizations to drive real, measurable change,” she stated. “This tracker gives us a concrete framework to align our platforms with policy accountability.”
“We recognise the important role independent accountability mechanisms play in strengthening implementation and improving service delivery,” said Dr. Tunde Ojo, National Mental Health Coordinator at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.
The statement further said, policymakers, practitioners, civil society organisations, researchers, and citizens can engage directly with the data by sharing real-time implementation updates, submitting verified evidence, or providing public comments on specific milestones in the tracker. By allowing the community to both contribute data and provide feedback, the tool serves as a collaborative space that supports greater transparency and accelerates mental health reform nationwide.
“Mental Health Policy Commitment Tracker was developed to close that gap. Serving as a centralised public dashboard and an independent verification mechanism, the platform aggregates government data, legislative updates, budget documents, verified stakeholder submissions, and community-reported evidence of implementation. It tracks progress on regulatory milestones, including the National Mental Health Act, the establishment of legally mandated governance structures, mental health financing and budget allocation trends, state-level legal advancements, workforce capacity, treatment access, affordability, and broader rights-based reforms. Each commitment is assessed against assigned implementation status markers such as Not Started, In Progress, Delayed, or Completed, enabling stakeholders to monitor progress across federal and state levels.”
Key institutional partners and participants supporting the initiative included Lagos Mind, Mind Over Matters NG, Stilt NG, Our Beta Life, the Mental Health Transformation Organisation (MHT), Hevolve Foundation.
Nigerian Mental Health (NMH) is a national advocacy organisation working to advance mental health law reform, reduce stigma, and expand access to quality care. It partners with organisations across Nigeria to promote policies and programs that protect mental health and dignity.
