More Men Commit Suicide In Africa, CDC Reports

SUICIDE

The Advisor, Non-communicable Diseases, Injuries and Mental Health for AfricaCDC, Dr Naeem Dalal, has stressed the need to stop cultural stereotypes that prevent African men from seeking emotional and mental wellness help.

Dalal spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lusaka, Zambia, on the sideline of a parallel session on Youth Mental Health in Africa, at the International Conference on Public Health in Africa on Tuesday.

The CPHIA, an annual event, is organised by the Africa Centres for Diseases Control and Prevention, with the 2023 edition being hosted by the Government of Zambia.

According to Dalal, stopping cultural stereotypes is necessary, as statistics specifically show that more men die by suicide on the continent of Africa.

Dalal is a Psychiatrist from Lusaka, Zambia, a youth mental health specialist and currently the National Mental Health, focal person and specialist for the Zambia National Public Health Institute.

He said, “There is more active suicide amongst men.

“When we talk about suicide, we need to understand two things. There’s suicide which is passive and suicide, which is active

“Active suicide is where you die by suicide.

“Passive suicide is where you have thoughts of dying by killing yourself or harming yourself, but you don’t go ahead with those thoughts. So, that’s passive suicide.

“Now, when we talk about statistics specifically for men on the continent in Africa, more men die by suicide.

“So, there’s more active suicide amongst men. For every 50 per cent of it, it is amongst the men that die and this is because men use more lethal with dying.’’

Dalal highlighted some reasons that make men resort to suicide rather than seek help.

“It’s also important to understand that men do not reach out for help for mental health concerns or issues that they face because of the culture that we have in Africa, where men are supposed to be supportive.

“Men are supposed to be responsible and breadwinners in communities. Showing that part of vulnerability is not something that is accepted in our communities across the African continent in general.