IMPACT OF COMMUNITY BASED MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMMEONYOUTH DEVELOPMENT IN EKOSODIN COMMUNITY, BENINCITY

The study assessed the impact of the community based mental health programme onyouthsdevelopment in Ekosodin Community, Benin City. The population of the study comprisedfour hundred (400) respondents who are youths between the ages of 18 to 35 years whohavelived in Ekosodin community in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. The research method/designused for the study was survey research. The data collected from the respondents wereusedfor data analysis through simple descriptive statistics namely, simple percentage, frequencycount and mean rating. The findings of the research concluded that there are manyfactorsthat contribute to the incidence of mental health challenges among youths of Ekosodincommunity such as peer pressure, substance abuse, unemployment, financial problems, family challenges, lack of parental guidance etc. The community based mental healthprogramme has a significant impact on youth development in Ekosodin community, BeninCity. There are many limitations to the community based mental health programmeinEkosodin Community such as lack of financing to sustain mental health programming, stigmaand discrimination and lack of community awareness which impairs the effectiveness of thecommunity based mental health programme. Social workers play a significant role inthesuccessful implementation and effectiveness of mental health programming by helpingtoascertain who needs special programmes, joining forces with other professionals intheimplementation of mental health programming, bridging the gap between the communityandmental health service providers and increasing effectiveness and sustainability of communitybased mental health programmes. Based on these findings, it was suggested that thegovernment and other stakeholders increase funding and material resources for thecommunity based mental health programme in Ekosodin. Increased financial resources will support what is currently being done, allow for trained professionals to be hired, andcreatemodern counselling and therapy spaces for the youths.