Vanguard summit: Nigeria risks losing gains of Mental Health Act, experts warn

By Chioma Obinna As Vanguard Newspapers holds its fourth Mental Health Summit in Lagos, stakeholders have warned that Nigeria’s Mental Health Act is dying from neglect, with critical provisions of the law remaining largely unimplemented amid a widening treatment gap and a severe shortage of mental health professionals. The 4th Vanguard Mental Health Summit, scheduled for October 9, 2026, at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos, will focus on the state of mental healthcare in Nigeria, particularly the growing mental health challenges confronting young people. The summit is themed, “Advancing Youth Mental Health in Nigeria through Access, Action and Advocacy,” with the sub-theme, “Mental Health in a Digital Age: Navigating Social Media, Technology and Wellbeing.” One of the speakers at the summit, renowned psychiatrist, Professor Taiwo Lateef Sheikh, who has repeatedly called for urgent implementation of the Mental Health Act, warned that its passage was only the beginning of the reforms required to transform mental healthcare delivery.

In a recent Vanguard report, Sheikh disclosed that fewer than 300 psychiatrists were available to serve a population of more than 200 million Nigerians, identifying the shortage of professionals, inadequate funding and poor access to community-based services as major gaps in the country’s mental health system. Sheikh, a Professor of Psychiatry and Psychopharmacology at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, said: “Legislation provides the skeleton, policy provides the direction, and financing provides the muscle. Closing the mental health systems gap requires all three to move together.” The psychiatrist said the Mental Health Act, signed into law in December 2022, represented a major milestone but warned that the law would have limited impact without adequate funding, trained personnel, functional services and effective implementation.

“The Mental Health Act is a major achievement, but the real test is implementation,” he said. The Act replaced the country’s colonial-era mental health legislation and established a modern framework for protecting people living with mental health conditions, including provisions relating to rights, dignity, consent, appropriate treatment and community-based care. However, experts have expressed concern that several of the structures and mechanisms envisaged by the law have yet to translate into a …