The tragedy revealed a harsh reality: many young people facing mental health issues had nowhere to turn for help.
“I saw the gap. I saw the need,” she recalls. “As a young person, I realized we needed youth-focused solutions to address youth mental health issues. »
Today, the 26-year-old doctoral student at the University of Cambridge runs the Ndinewe Foundation, a Zimbabwean organization that provides locally and culturally relevant mental health resources, peer support and education to young people.
Ndinewe translates to I am with youIn English.
Tanatswa Amanda Chikaura, 26, a UN youth leader, is the founder of the Ndinewe Foundation.
“Our main goal is to ensure that young people have the resources and tools they need to not only support themselves, but also to support others, and to ensure that these tools and resources are locally and culturally relevant,” she said.
For example, through community initiatives, including the Sports and Mental Health Initiative, the foundation’s main objective is to integrate mental health education into sporting activities for children and young people.
From local to global
On Friday, Chikaura will join 14 other young UN leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals at UN headquarters for One World, One Match, One Goal, a youth-focused event ahead of the FIFA final matches that will highlight the role of sport in promoting the Sustainable Development Goals.
The gathering will also launch a new youth mental health campaign aimed at encouraging young people around the world to talk openly about mental health, seek support when they need it, and care for each other.
For Chikaura, whose work combines sports and mental health education, the campaign reflects the same belief that has guided her advocacy from the beginning: that young people themselves must be at the center of designing solutions.
A growing crisis
The need is urgent. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), suicide is the third leading cause of death among people aged 15 to 29, with most deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries.
Chikaura highlighted that Africa is home to the youngest population in the world, making investment in youth mental health particularly crucial.
“There is a lot of work to be done,” she said. “Not only to raise awareness about mental health, but also to ensure young people have the tools and resources they need to thrive and live meaningful lives.”
His academic research also focuses on one of the least understood aspects of mental health: suicide prevention among people with autism.
She said autistic people face a significantly higher risk of suicide than non-autistic people, but suitable support remains limited.
Giving young people a voice
As one of the United Nations’ youth leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals, Chikaura hopes to bring the experiences of Zimbabwe’s youth to international decision-makers while advocating for increased investment in mental health.
She warned that mental health continues to receive less than 2 percent of many national health budgets, despite the scale of the need.
“Young people’s mental health has been neglected for too long,” she said. “This cannot continue.”
Her goal, she added, is to ensure that every community has access to culturally relevant mental health support so that no young person is prevented from achieving their potential due to mental health issues.
“I hope that young people will be able to live, thrive and be the best version of themselves. »
