In a landmark move to transform mental health support for young people, Antigua and Barbuda today officially launched the Young Caribbean Minds Mental Health Chat Line and unveiled a groundbreaking youth mental health research report that will help shape the country’s new mental health legislation.
Minister of State in the Ministry of Social and Urban Transformation, Kiz Johnson, joined Prime Minister Gaston Browne, Minister of Health, Wellness, the Environment and Civil Service Affairs Michael Joseph, and regional partners from UNICEF Eastern Caribbean Area and The University of the West Indies for the historic occasion.
The initiative represents a major investment in youth wellbeing and places young people at the centre of national decision-making on mental health.
The event marked the culmination of an extensive research process that captured the perspectives of more than 1,000 children and young people across Antigua and Barbuda, providing invaluable insight into what they want to see reflected in the country’s pending Mental Health Care Bill.
Representatives from UNICEF Eastern Caribbean Area, The University of the West Indies, and the National Youth Parliament Association addressed the gathering, which also welcomed volunteers who will undergo specialized training to staff the new mental health chat line.
Describing the initiative as transformative, Acting Representative for UNICEF Eastern Caribbean Area, Maryam Abdu, said the chat line will provide a free, confidential and anonymous text-based service in both English and Spanish. The service will be supported by trained volunteers and connected to child protection services, ensuring young people have access to immediate assistance and guidance.
Prime Minister Browne noted that the findings of the youth research report will play a critical role in modernizing Antigua and Barbuda’s outdated 1957 Mental Health Act, emphasizing that young people must have a voice in shaping policies that directly impact their lives and wellbeing.
What about older folk? I know an older woman who desperately needed counseling and couldn’t find it.