The SA Federation for Mental Health partnered with the Student Representative Council (SRC) of the University of Witwatersrand in Johanneburg (also known as Wits University) to celebrate World Mental Health Day on 10 October 2019. The event was supported by a number of partner organisations, including the Regional Psychosocial Support Initiative (REPSSI), Central Gauteng Mental Health and Akeso. A Capella group Mofolo Melodies assisted to gather a crowd for the event through their Afro-Pop songs.
The theme for the event was “Suicide and Social Media”, aimed at addressing the rising incidents of suicidal posts on social media. The event created an opportunity for SAFMH to engage with students and raise awareness around suicide and mental health. Students were encouraged to write messages of hope to others and to sign the ‘Speak Your Mind’ pledge (www.gospeakyourmind.org). This pledge is a call to end the silence and to call on leaders to invest in mental health. Those signing the pledge are taking a stand to show leaders around the world that it’s time to take action on mental health.
