In a day and age where mental health is a buzzing topic, Turkmenistan is taking the steps necessary to change the mental health crisis in their country. The UNDP-DPPA program is making this change to furnish citizens and frontline employees to combat mental health crises for both women and youth. The mental health and psychosocial program aims to turn around the state of poverty and mental health in Turkmenistan. In 2007, BMC Medicine published an article about the dictatorship’s neglect of the health care crisis and the many ways it affected the common people. It found that government officials treated psychiatric patients with abuse, and officials demoed private homes for government regimens and took a personal part in much more of the corruption that is leading to the deterioration of poverty and mental health in Turkmenistan.

The Solution

The UNDP-DPPA Joint Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Programme is working to combat the poor management and decline of mental health in Turkmenistan. This is being done with the creation of the Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Program for youth and women. The program focuses on equipping locals with the skillset and knowledge to perform preventative measures and provide psychosocial support to their peers. They have formed this program for mental health on four critical rules: the right to safety, the right to confidentiality, the right to self-determination and the right to be free of discrimination. This program should help women survivors of violence in addressing their mental health.

The Start-up

The UNDP-DPPA Joint Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Programme is continuing working to combat the mental health crisis in Turkmenistan through its creation. With the program focused on equipping locals with the skillset and knowledge to perform preventative measures and provide psychosocial support to their peers they are pushing an acknowledgment of the mental health state in low/middle income countries.

The UNDP-DPPAS four pillars have allowed citizens of Turkmenistan to safely access health care, nutrition and shelter under the pillars for the rights to safety and confidentiality. MHPSS Program is safely combatting gender-based violence alongside UNFPA guidelines which has gained traction in at least three countries and already started to lead Turkmenistan to soon drop in the percentile of mental health numbers. The equipping of proper training on mental health intervention and prevention is a huge step for the protection against the violence and discrimination that is a leading cause for a mental health crisis for the women and youth in the country. 

Changing the Status Quo

Highlighting their progress the program excelled and gained movement back in June 2023, when more than 200 frontline workers like police, academia employees, social services and more joined in on the training program. By equipping these frontline workers who are the first contact point for those suffering mental health crises the UNDP-DPPA are promoting a great deal of change for Turkmenistan’s women and youth. But, the program goes beyond this offering online training in three different languages for free. Hopefully, the program will lead to better medical and mental care for Turkmens. Turkmen, following the UNDP-DPPA program, are now receiving public sector loans from ADB that will strengthen their access to all things.

– Yeliz Turkdil

Yeliz is based in Norman, OK, USA and focuses on Good News and Global Health for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr