is something that all countries in the region share, so they are looking to insulate the region to the extent that they can from being drawn into what might become a new cold war. arab leaders are engaged in the tensions between the east and west, among them. saudi crown prince mohammed ben selman, he has been under u. s. pressure due to a decision by opec plus to reduce oil output. washington believes that works for russia's benefits, whether a unanimous stance and statement comes out, tryst of all in support of saudi arabia. second of all, in support of out of neutrality, away from the current. yeah. russia, ukrainian more cuz this, if it happens, we'll empower to. so the political decision and the pushback against washington pressure, arab summit have had few if any impactful resolutions due to regional differences. but this time around the challenges as a result of international developments may affect the outcome. then there else is

eda algiers. ah. this is al jazeera, these are the top stores. people in israel have been voting for the 5th time in less than 4 years. early figures suggest there's been an increase in turn out with numbers not seen in 23 years. analysts say the biggest issue is whether voters are for or against former leader benjamin netanyahu. bernard smith has more from western newsome. so far turn out is about 28 percent of the highest. it's been in 23 years in israel, but to turn out across the whole country. but we also now know the turn out just in palestinian israeli communities, is only a 12 percent. now it's been a fairly truncated campaign period because we have the series of holidays in the run up to the election. so i think the only really got going in the last couple of weeks and the general view was that people were fairly apathetic because they've

already had 4 election to go through. and this is the 5th one in less than 4 years . but nevertheless, the outcome of this election could be really consequential for the future of israel . people in denmark of picking a new parliament 14 parties vying for 179 seats. the political battle between the incumbent left wing block and white, 3 candidates. supporters of brazilian president jack both sent out have blocked roads across the country after he last sunday is one of the vote drivers, the nation's largest city south paulo have been protesting on the road leading to its international airport. the man accused of attacking the husband of us house speaker nancy pelosi is expected in court. later on tuesday to face charges of attempted murder, burglary, and assault paul pelosi was beaten with a hammer inside the council of san francisco. home on fridays to migrant boats have sunk off the coast of greece. the 1st went down near the island of

a via and off the coast of summer island. a 2nd boat has sun, northern islands, top politicians are said to meet for a new round of talks on tuesday to try to end their political deadlock. it's elected assembly hasn't been sitting because of a boy called by the unionist party, which is pro brutish over week. those are the headlines. the news is going to continue here on, on the 0 after the stream. thanks for being with me. goodbye. i'm from canada and my country are playing in the welcome for the 1st time since 1980 say this is my 1st time hovering a world cut. so to half the country that i was born in playing in the country that i live in. well, that's truly amazing. it's so exciting to watch. the world can come to cats are seeing it all. come to light has been an incredible experience, having the biggest football tournament in the world in your own back yard, but such a special time to be living here with

welcome to the stream. i'm josh rushing, sitting in for for me. okay. the world health organization is leading a public awareness campaign aimed at tackling high rates of death by suicide across africa. and it's urgent governments across the continent to do more for people in crisis. so today we ask, why is there a mental health emergency and africa? hey, look, if you're watching this on youtube, seattle box like right there. we have a live stream producer waiting, get your questions and comments to me so i can get them to our expert turned the show. so let's do this together and it's really important show today i can use your help, but i want to warn you, we're going to be talking about some sensitive issues that include mental health and death by suicide. ah, joining us to discuss the mental health crisis across africa. avi way, fernand,

he is a senior officer at united for global mental health. she's in cape town, south africa mosca cosa, is founder at mind. lab africa, mental health care, non profit. she joins us from kampala, uganda, and from jose nigeria, we have ruth tilley kado. she is a journalist in a mental health advocate. alright, avi way, i'd like to begin with you. and so you're sitting in south africa and yeah, 6 of the 10 countries in the world that have the highest suicide rates are in sub saharan africa. but 3 of those countries are actually within the borders of south africa. so i'm just, i want to ask you what's going on there, what's happening with mental health in south africa? so yeah, as you said, we definitely have a mental health crisis in south africa. the biggest challenge is that we have

a challenge of avoidance. we don't have the right policies, and there's still quite a lot of stigma when it comes to mental health challenges and mental health as a whole. and we have 23 suicide deaths in south africa every day. and then $460.00 attempts of suicide deaths in south africa every single day. so at the moment it really is a crisis that we're in and we don't have enough services as a country. there's a 93 percent treatment gap. so it means that the number of people that need access to care and the people that receive care, i'm not enough. we don't have enough services. our mental health policy lapsed in 2020 and it has not yet been updated. many of the mental health service workers are not trained enough to serve the people that are in their communities. and so that really leaves us in a space where we are constantly being reactive to the mental health crisis. and not

necessarily being preventative towards positive mental health. well, the u. n. is trying to do this campaign. i want to bring her doctor joseph. uh boring is the director for program management. that the who, here's what he has to say about this. the lives of people needing care do not have access to services with entreated conditions, leading to staggering debussy, person social disability, substance abuse, and even suicide ended and africa. dorothy come to john as the highest 3 top suicide globally. iran 11 out of 100000 people die by suicide every year. and it is above the global average of 9 a 100000 people. so liz is talking about the suicide rights there and added to me. suicides in this issue are the canary in the coal mine,

but they're also kind of the tip of the iceberg of a mental health crisis. i don't know if we need to focus as much necessarily on suicide as why those numbers are so high and that's kind of the broader mental health crisis. now here in you god, you're joining us in the middle of a power outage. as i write in uganda, you got about a one, a 1000000 chan in a, in the air of kampala. so you, i think we have a delay that that's okay. i'll be patient as my question, but in uganda you have a one and 1000000 chance of meeting a psychiatrist, meaning for every 1000000 people that live there, you have one psychiatrist, but as a, as you're in a power outage right now, how does the country, i guess trias, what they need to address here. do they address, getting you more steady electricity, or do they address? getting more psychiatrist.

thank you for your district. the question, but of course would be to get more electricity rate we've not, but it's one point where we take mental health very, very seriously. like you said, for population of 4546000001 psychiatrist. yes. and it's very disheartening. you know, we couldn't go, we couldn't blame all of our africa, mental health trying to do it. we can say, oh, there's a lack of awareness. however, there are people doing that that weren't correct. that's what we do. that's what i really does rate, but we have a, we have a policy that we haven't access gap, right? so it's not just enough to say it is nor when it or to blame it on stigma. but we need to ask ourselves at that particular question where, what are we doing to address what action are we taking to address the mental health crisis. and i'll tell you for free, we aren't doing enough. okay,

just by me diverse, i'm coming to you. i'm coming to you and you're here in my area. actually want to set you up with a bit of a package from out just here a reporter mohammed address. he did this, he was showing kind of children who have been in boca rom camps and they're receiving this kind of psychological support after the camps, it was run this clip born and raised in burke where i'm cams, these children are experiencing for the 1st time. what it means to be a child. oh, they're part of the 6000 victims and family members of bull caught on fighters. who said under tonight durham security forces in the past few months, after a few weeks of psychological support, those helping them are surprised by the rapid trustful mission. they see. you see a lot of them coming into desert space thinking very distress team can hungry. what

i thought we sort of engagement, oh, because me and give them a call 31 sometimes depending on how we see the availability and all of that. so we operate engagement, you see a lot of changes, you see them interacting before you see them taking leadership role to see them doing for martha. so ruth, watching this clip, it seems kind of promising. actually it seems, is there a lot of children who are getting the psychological support that they might need? is that common in nigeria is that is that the situation there where you are? ok, thank you very much. just thank you for having me on the show. so like leave there . well also i, jerry at, charlie is not necessarily that we don't have the doctors all. there was a lack of awareness that challenge mostly is the fact that we have a silent culture, a culture where something just the taboo. you can talk about and so what's in the video, you know, it is really hopeful. i'm excited to see because nigerians know they know that,

you know, this young people need this interventions. it will people who are just kidnapped by vocal her, or bandy, need these interventions because when they come back into the society, i tell you not the same people. yeah, not the same people who come back into society and it's difficult for them to acclimatize so they also need this psycho logical health intervention is such a way that you know, they can come back and be normal people because what they see in dos bushes is know what normal people should go through. and so yes, there is a lot of intervention now. there is a lot of a when that's the challenge is the idea of the silent cultural with, you know, we don't want to talk about mental issues. nobody wants to identify as having mental issues. and i think you're hitting a court for list here because in uganda the word suicide, right? i guess the word suicide itself is taboo. yeah. and the act of it is actually get

criminalized. i don't even understand how that plays out yet. do you touch on the yes so yes, suicide is criminalized. it's it's, it's no friends. i'm and it never made sense to me because what do you do when someone days from so they say, you know, do you try and do what do you charge them with? it's never made sense to me. and this is, i was actually one of the issues that were highlighted during while suicide prevention day last month. and so yes, there's still a lot of stigma around the web suicide. it's not easy to say is speak about in public, i mean as a suicide, and it's a part of my story that i often know mix when i am doing my work around awareness and advocacy work around around mental health. so we are, we are also living in sort of a, you know,

silent culture. it's very taboo. even from you know, a cultural perspective. if someone died from suicide, they don't receive a proper burial over the past year. i know people close to me that have died from suicide or, you know, and loved ones of people close to me. and that has been that, that instant that has been the situation. right. so i still need, we have a very long way to go or go in terms of getting people to, of addressing. and, you know, understanding this over addressing the stigma around suicide. and i keep saying it is our inability to talk about suicide. that in the longer i was is more suicides. rates are here. are you tube audience? and let me tell you something. if you don't know much about the world, youtube comments is not a place where there's a lot of gratitude and positivity. but we actually are getting a lot of gratitude for talking about this today. so maybe people are tired of it

being taboo and other. let me throw a couple of comments, were actually getting on twitter and from you tube here. this is from someone in the real should banassi trev viddy. they said the stigma surrounding mental illness in africa is so bad is now become denial. it's easy to jump to conclusions such as witchcraft. people replace prescription were prayer, when things turn to work, they say god's will. he goes on to say a priest, a pastor, a shake, a clan elder is more trusted than a medical doctor, or psychiatrist, a patient refusing prescription from a doctor in favor of rituals. pisses me off because it's suicide based this business in which integrity is obsolete. sad individuals are unaware. wow. and he had a lot to say, but audio can you pick up on that?

okay so if i hey, you know, my great aunt actually committed suicide. so i'm married now, but if my husband's family knew that someone in my lineage had committed suicide,

they would not touch me within long spawn. and that is amazing because i just got to know there's, like 3 years ago, i was stuck into my mom. i don't know if she intended to tell me and you know, she just put it out there and i'm like what, what, what did you say? and, you know, she goes on tells me the story. but then now i'm happy that you know, several years down the line, we can sit down and talk about this so that people know that even if someone in your family has committed suicide or someone, you know, a loved one has committed suicide. that stigmatization has to stop, because if we don't stop this stigmatization, then people will not be willing to come out and talk about the a mental health situation. you know, like you sat, joshua alia there, we're a lot that leads to suicide. given us nicholas trauma, trauma could build up, i'm going to depression and but here even asked me to us trauma, we don't pay attention to we someone says, i'm trauma. nice. and everyone laughed, and he's like, really traumatized dramatize because of was, you know,

so these are some discussions that we need to, you know, talk about more openly, sort of people know that didn't need to get help when be a feeling mentally pressed. you know, ruth, i wonder if we didn't do you a bit of a disservice by showing that clip from boca harass with the children because they represent a very extreme example. i think most people would agree might need some psychological help, but really the problems much more broad is much more ubiquitous and is much more common than someone who's been something as extreme as growing up in a book or her arm camp. right. i mean, it's like we all deal with it. right? yes, we do. absolutely. and i would say that in a geri air, for in lot of hours it, it, we don't necessarily have to be in the book of her. i'm come to feel the pressure. because with every thing going around, we feel like so many things are not work in. so we almost feel like everyone is

sort of like india, you know, vocal, her, i'm calm sort of way because we are so mentally pressure you're, you're trying to get just the littlest thing to work like does good health services care. you can afford that, you know, bored, non people can afford food. so that was a lot of pressure on people. so these are the things that, you know, cumulate into along, you know, so side and, you know, the bigger things that we're talking about now. but they're reese in nigeria, they're really a lot of mental pressure. and like, you know what, over it affects the men more than the women because most men don't like to talk about their mental issues, you know, lower rate. right. and why did you said that? because we actually have a we can come back, i know you had more to say there, but we have a video comment from someone in the stream community. they sent us into us. the name is eddie kamani. they're about as far away in the cotton as i get from you there and kenya on the other side. and he is a mental health awareness advocate here, checked us up to see if the disposable mental health. i wish to share my puff,

my journey have landed that you cannot ignore you wash hands over manian 40th class held this off. as for africa and mental health, i believe that governments and institutions and walks places should fund more mental health programs. the solution lies in integrating mental health with seeing the overall health care system and work stresses. and as africans as individuals, out like us to see mental health move from just being a conversation to action, where we can start doing things and embracing our wellness and fighting the stigma that surrounds mental health. so there's a man talking about the stigma and talking about his own mental health journey. what do you think about that and africa? man, i know that he's very impressive. very, very impressive. i call an old man, especially those in 90 jeramia. when you have issues, you know what happens back home. when most men have mental health issues be the

result of drinking. they become a colleagues that we didn't take out the mental health issues. they just drink the stuco and come back home and sleep all come back home, you know, in the get involved in order biases of domestic violence and things like that. that is what they do. so if an africa man can talk about it, i think that now is the time for all men to come up and say, look, i am depressed, i have had issues, maybe in my office, i have pressure here on day. i am utterly depressed and i need to know now is the time to talk about this because it is only a healthy person that can be healthy for society that a kamani they're seeing in your praises here on the stream lesson less than one that josh? yeah, yeah, yeah, go for it, i'll be way go for it. so with what's just going back to the bulk of her arm camp and wax. ruth had mentioned. so there's something called toxic straits if you're constantly exposed to stressful situation. adverse experiences that actually increases your threshold of experiencing what recall toxic stress. that means that

in the long term that increases your risk of mental illness increases the chances of swiss identity increases chunks of anxiety at risk behavior. so with all of that, it means that the preventative mental health measures are very important. yes, it's important for us to treat mental illness and also provide safe spaces when people are suicidal. but i really believe from a young age that we need to put in preventative, mental health measures. and other words, we teach people how to find safe spaces and communicate their feelings. teach people how to be able to become self resilient, how to calm themselves down. i know right now self k is like the bad word, but at the end of the day that is a part of being mentally well. and the reality is we all have mental health. it's not just mental illness, but mental health as a whole. as a spectrum, every one of us, the thing, yeah,

have mental health that how do we maintain positive mental health? how do we take care about mental health? it's like brushing your teeth every day. do something every day that contributes toward the positive mental, well be most key pick up on that. i'm yes, i'll just quickly go back to what ruth shared about, you know, addressing men's mental health. so what we've noticed, what we've observed over the years, is generally in the health care system. women have better health seeking behavior and men. so even if it was something like a cold or during coldly, that woman is more likely to seek out. i treatment and health health care. yeah, treatment of some kind am, which isn't the same for men. however, addressing mental health, mental health challenges amongst men, what we've discovered, what we've seen locally is it's important for us to consider rich reaching men where they are. yes, they have, they, they suffer more from, you know,

they suffer more from depression. suicide rates are high among men, so they are the most ball. there are bull when it comes to these conversation. sions that help them. how do we ensure that, you know, they have this covers, you're breaking up your worth. i want to know it and know where to find them. oh there says ruth, one of the things i read was the that we look at the suicide numbers, but they represent a successful suicide temple represents one and 20 of people who actually attempted it. meaning the problem is much to have 20 times larger than what the actual numbers say. can we use the last few minutes of the show here? if everyone has some tips on what you would advise people who do, who might find themselves in the mental health crisis. routing, do you have some stuff like that that that the you could share? yes, i think the 1st one would be, i think, your josha josh, sorry. i think the 1st step would be that b r, where then there ries and mental health be, are way you must be aware. you know,

we're very easy to seek health when we have like a headache. we have malaria back in west africa and people just go to the hospital . so when you have you filled out mental pressure, it could be as little as just feeling traumatized about something or just feeling depressed about some issues. please go and seek help, don't wait until it becomes b. so be a way, be very aware that there was something called mental health and a good affect your project, cbc ari. loza don't do it. it's all rude, says be aware and seek help was. do you have some tips for people in there? are people in our youtube chat right now talking about their challenges i what i would say is, and it's okay not to be okay. i'm and it's the act that acknowledgement, preston, 1st of all that eventually leads you to adam, will lead you to, to, to seek the support that she'd need. so it's important to be mindful and said's.

okay. it's okay not to be okay. the same well have a headache or lou is i'm the same way i need to address, you know, whatever mental health challenge are going throughout the time. i'm all the way. what are you got force just to follow on the ladies again identifying your feelings is very important, but also reaching out to 24 hours suicide help lines. i know they are quite a few in africa here in south africa, we have the south african depression, and anxiety group is a 24 hour helpline in terms of suicide. and you can call them and speak to someone . it's an anonymous line. and then also reaching out to community groups that work with people that are meeting mental health services. so really just taking those steps even chantelle stansell speaking to someone that you trust. yeah. and that that is my, my main encouragement. all right, so that's i think that's where we're going to end it today. i want to take all 3 of my guest, avi way, liz. ruth, for be more to come on and talk about something that is taboo,

but is even more important. and if you're out there and you need help, i promise there are people that want to help you. there are crisis lines that you can get to. so that's all we have time for today. but you can always find us online at stream. got al jazeera dot com take care of yourself, right. thanks for watching. ah, a tooth . a new documentary series discovers how

centuries old indigenous knowledge is being used to deal with current problems of climate change. and louis hamilton, economic ambition, is so often at odds with many of the worlds indigenous communities and the traditional way of life consume, i'd consider them honor to share the creams of our people with others. fascinations frontline, coming soon on al jazeera yugoslavia disintegrated. war descended only to inhabitants amidst the death and destruction, one man created a peaceful microcosm for boys whose fathers faced each other in battle. episode 3 of football rebels enters the world of footballing legend, prag, cushy h. who went from coaching boys, football to teaching young men live, frederick push each of the siege of sarajevo on al jazeera. we understand the differences and similarities of cultures across the wound.

sentimental value call hand out his ear will bring you the news and current affairs that mattie. out of that brutus, she, rocky journalist who's visualizing complex statistics and a simple art home. i think it offers us some really exciting opportunities to break apart from those systems of power and to collect data in a way that better represent different communities. challenging mainstream misconceptions, the quite crate can handle ministration, does alienate people. it doesn't make people feel like i'm not mind on the sense booth truth. is it anyway on al jazeera ah, this is.