Talking and Relief:

On average, a Ugandan learner spends 260 days every year in school, divided over three terms that run from February to December. 

Beyond the classroom, students engage in co-curricular activities such as sports, music, dance and drama, debating, and peer-to-peer club activities. 

These are meant to offer a break from the long class sessions that typically run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. 

Yet for many teenagers, school is also where mental health struggles take root. Academic burnout, aggressive bullying, family difficulties and other pressures can trigger emotional distress that manifests in poor academic performance and, in some cases, drug and alcohol abuse.

Historically, Uganda’s education system has responded to behavioural distress, emotional withdrawal and psychological breakdown through punitive channels. 

Standard administrative responses have leaned on formal disciplinary panels, strict reprimands, indefinite suspensions or outright expulsions. 

While these measures instilled discipline and fear, they did not create space for learners to share or express their emotions, ask questions about their mental health or seek help without stigma. 

In recent years, however, conversations about mental health and well-being have gained ground in Ugandan schools. Peer-led spaces such as clubs are proving pivotal in helping learners openly share their experiences, access psychological first aid and receive support within the environments where they spend most of their time.

This shift aligns with broader policy developments. In 2025, the Ministry of Education and Sports rolled out guidelines for integrating mental well-being and psychosocial support in education institutions, developed with UNESCO and Strong Minds. 

The framework mandates a weekly “Mental Health Hour,” builds structured clinical referral pathways and trains educators to address rising stress and depression among learners. 

At Mount of Olives College in Kakiri, Wakiso District, the visible results of this alternative approach are increasingly evident. 

Operating with technical guidance from civil society organisations, most notably Mental Health Uganda and SOS Children’s Villages, the school has implemented a structured programme to train student leaders as mental health champions. 

These young people are equipped with basic skills to recognise early warning signs of emotional distress among their classmates, offer active and compassionate listening, and link vulnerable individuals to designated focal teachers or external medical facilities. 

By re-centering mental health support within familiar, daily environments such as classroom blocks, assembly grounds and schoolyard swings, the model effectively removes mental healthcare from isolated clinical settings and integrates it directly into student peer networks.

One clear example of why mental health conversations and spaces are important in Uganda’s learning institutions is Erisa. 

His personal trajectory provides a case study in how peer-driven intervention can alter a young person’s life. 

Reflecting on his earlier education, Erisa recalls enduring persistent bullying during primary school, an experience that led him to internalise painful emotions out of fear that speaking up would burden or hurt others. 

By the time he reached Senior Two in secondary school, his unaddressed emotional distress had escalated into severe depression, social isolation and active suicidal ideation, ultimately culminating in a suicide attempt. 

Like many of his peers, Erisa’s initial understanding of mental health was heavily clouded by prevailing societal stigma. He initially assumed that anyone associated with mental health advocacy or peer support was “mad,” associating the concept strictly with psychiatric institutionalisation at Butabika National Referral Hospital. 

His perspective began to transform when he encountered the school’s Mental Health Club and engaged directly with trained student champions. 

Through these interactions, Erisa was introduced to a foundational ethos that shifted his self-perception: the simple, reassuring idea that “it is okay not to be okay.” 

Opening up about his internal struggles allowed him to release what he previously experienced as a heavy mountain resting on his head, realising in hindsight that the burden was manageable once shared with someone who listened without judgment. 

Reclaiming a sense of self-worth and recognising that his presence mattered to those around him, Erisa transitioned from being a student in crisis to becoming an active mental health champion himself. 

Today, he uses his own past struggles to recognise distress in others, stepping in to support peers experiencing severe crises, including taking decisive action to assist a fellow student who had attempted self-harm through a medication overdose.

The operational effectiveness of these school-based clubs rests on an accessible, peer-to-peer methodology designed to operate seamlessly within the school environment. 

The champions are trained to apply a practical framework centred on three core actions: “Look, Listen, and Link.” As student champion Namutebi Gloria Tracy explains, the process begins with keen observation. 

Champions pay close attention to changes in their peers’ routine behaviours, such as sudden social withdrawal, academic decline or noticeable shifts in mood. When a classmate appears troubled, the champion approaches them in a non-threatening manner to offer a confidential space to talk. 

During the listening phase, champions practice empathetic, non-judgmental listening. Importantly, peer champions are explicitly instructed not to act as certified therapists or to impose ready-made answers onto the person in distress. 

Instead, their role is to ask thoughtful questions and guide their peers toward discovering their own solutions. When a situation involves deep-seated trauma, severe depression or physical harm, champions activate the final phase of the framework: linking the student to higher levels of care. 

This referral pathway connects the student to designated focal teachers within the school, the national toll-free mental health helpline or professional counselling services provided by external partner organisations. By deploying students as observant, compassionate first responders, emotional distress is identified and addressed before it escalates into extreme behavioural disruption or severe self-harm.

To support this non-clinical approach, schools participating in the programme have created dedicated safe spaces on campus where students can decompress and seek support away from academic pressures. 

At Mount of Olives College, areas such as the “Mental Health Corner,” campus swings and recreation zones equipped with chess, judo and board games like snakes and ladders serve as informal entry points for mental well-being. 

Mental health corners in the school library also provide quiet spaces for reflection. Students frequently gather in these areas during breaks or after meals to unwind, interact with champions or simply enjoy a quiet moment. 

These physical spaces, combined with regular awareness activities on school noticeboards and during assemblies, help dismantle the pervasive belief that discussing mental health is synonymous with madness. Instead, mental health is framed neutrally and constructively as the overall psychological and emotional well-being of every student.

The integration of peer-led mental health clubs has also driven a significant shift in school management practices and administrative discipline. Historically, secondary schools have operated under strict disciplinary models where behavioural infractions, often stemming from underlying psychological distress, were met with immediate punishment. 

Mariam Kako, a teacher at Mount of Olives College who serves as the focal teacher for mental health, previously spent years serving on the school’s formal disciplinary committee. 

She notes that prior to the introduction of the mental health programme, teachers lacked the training and frameworks necessary to explore the emotional root causes behind student misbehaviour. Following the programme’s implementation, Kako stepped down from the disciplinary committee to focus entirely on guiding the mental health club. 

Under this revised approach, students exhibiting behavioural issues or academic decline are first referred to the mental health team for counselling and support before any formal disciplinary measures are considered. 

This shift from punitive action to restorative support has yielded measurable institutional results, leading to a noticeable decline in student suspensions and expulsions. School Principal Regina Laboke strongly supports this administrative evolution, emphasising that an institution’s primary mandate extends beyond academic instruction to include holistic development. Highlighting the practical reality that “it is easier to teach a happy child,” Kako notes that integrating club activities into co-curricular hours, weekends and holiday boot camps ensures that student well-being is prioritised without infringing upon scheduled instructional time.

The structural foundation supporting these school-based clubs was established through a structured pilot project executed by Mental Health Uganda in collaboration with SOS Children’s Villages, supported by donor funding from the Norwegian government. 

Muzamil Kaibo, a counsellor with Mental Health Uganda, explains that the pilot initiative was designed to test the feasibility of peer-led mental health models across eight secondary schools in Wakiso and Gulu districts. 

The implementation framework relied heavily on building internal capacity within the participating schools. First, project organisers engaged Senior Men and Senior Women teachers, recognising that these staff members were already naturally positioned to handle student welfare issues. 

These teachers received specialised training to equip them to act as institutional anchors and supervisors for the clubs. Second, the project facilitated the establishment of student clubs comprising representative peers from various class levels, ensuring that every grade had at least one designated champion. 

Third, the project introduced structured training materials, including peer manuals, essay competitions, debate series and annual holiday boot camps focused on self-esteem, confidence and stress management. Finally, the project established formal referral networks, mapping nearby health facilities and utilising consent and assent procedures to ensure that students needing professional psychiatric or medical evaluation could access services confidentially.

Despite the clear successes demonstrated in pilot schools like Mount of Olives College, the long-term sustainability and nationwide expansion of school-based mental health clubs face major systemic hurdles. 

The primary vulnerability of the current model lies in its heavy reliance on external non-governmental organisations and donor-funded project budgets. When grant cycles conclude and external funding ends, these valuable programmes risk losing momentum or dissolving entirely unless public institutions step in to absorb their operational costs and integrate them into official education structures. 

This reliance on temporary donor financing brings to light a broader issue of public accountability and policy implementation within Uganda’s education and health sectors. Student leaders across the country have voiced growing concern over the gap between official policy statements and the reality on the ground. 

Shillah Ainembabazi, President of the Uganda National Students Association (UNSA), points out that while government frameworks and policy circulars regarding student welfare exist on paper, actual implementation, monitoring and resource allocation in public schools remain inadequate. 

Ainembabazi emphasises that youth mental health is not merely a localized health concern, but a critical national issue with direct implications for Uganda’s socio-economic development. Unaddressed mental health struggles among young people contribute to academic failure, increased drop-out rates, reduced productivity and long-term societal challenges.

To address these systemic gaps, student advocates, educators and civil society organisations are calling for direct government action and institutional reform. 

They urge the Ministry of Education and Sports, in coordination with the Ministry of Health, to enforce clear directives requiring every secondary school in Uganda to establish, resource and maintain a functional Mental Health Club. 

Stakeholders are also urging the government to create and fund official, permanent positions for qualified professional counsellors within the public school staffing structure, moving away from the practice of burdening subject teachers with complex psychological cases. 

Standardised mental health training manuals, literature and educational materials must be produced and distributed to all schools nationwide, backed by dedicated allocations within national and local education budgets. 

School programmes should actively involve individuals with lived experience of mental health challenges to serve as relatable peer champions, helping to normalise discussions and break down persistent social stigma.

The experiences documented at Mount of Olives College demonstrate that addressing the youth mental health crisis does not require high-cost medical infrastructure or complex interventions. Instead, it requires practical empathy, structured peer support, trained teacher guidance and a collective commitment to breaking the silence surrounding emotional distress. 

As student champion Omiko reflects, mental health is fundamentally about human well-being and learning how to navigate life’s challenges constructively so that individuals can continue forward. 

For students like Mubiru Erisa, the presence of a peer-led mental health club marked the absolute boundary between despair and a purposeful future. His transition from experiencing suicidal crises to actively serving as a peer champion demonstrates the profound human impact of accessible emotional support. 

As Uganda seeks to build a resilient, productive young generation, the success of these pilot clubs offers a clear, proven roadmap. The responsibility now rests with government leaders, policymakers and educational authorities to ensure that these grassroots solutions are fully institutionalised across the country, guaranteeing that no student is left to suffer in silence.