The Ghana Alliance for Mental Health and Development, also known as the Mental Health Alliance, has called on the government to introduce a 5 per cent employment quota in local government staffing for persons with disabilities as part of measures to promote inclusion and improve their livelihoods.
The Alliance also demanded sustainable financing for mental health services and an end to stigma and discrimination against persons with disabilities and people with lived experience of mental health conditions.
The call was contained in a statement issued in Tamale to commemorate World Mental Health Day 2026, being observed under the theme: “Lived Experiences Heard, Real Voices, Real Change.”
The statement was signed by Dr Peter Badimak Yaro, Executive Director of BasicNeeds-Ghana and National Convenor of the Mental Health Alliance.
The Alliance said persons with physical disabilities and those with lived experience of mental health conditions must have equal opportunities to work, access quality support services and participate fully in society.
It further called on Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) to strictly apply the five per cent District Assemblies Common Fund (DACF) allocation for persons with disabilities to support employable skills development and income-generating activities for persons with physical, mental and psychosocial disabilities.
According to the Alliance, the government must also increase employment opportunities for persons with disabilities, particularly young people and women, in the corporate and private sectors, stressing that the effective implementation of Ghana’s labour and disability laws was critical to achieving that objective.
On mental health financing, the Alliance commended the government for including four mental health conditions under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), but urged it to go further by actualising and adequately resourcing the Mental Health Fund through domestic resource mobilisation.
It said sustainable financing would facilitate the full implementation of the Mental Health Law and improve access to mental health services across the country.
The Alliance also urged individuals, families, communities, traditional authorities, faith leaders, influencers and institutions to intensify efforts to eliminate stigma, prejudice, stereotypes and discrimination against persons with disabilities and people with lived experience of mental health conditions.
It stressed that such persons must not merely be consulted but must be meaningfully involved in decision-making on policies, programmes and resources designed to support them.
Call on Media
The Alliance called on the media to adopt respectful language and protect the dignity and privacy of persons with lived experience of mental health conditions and disabilities.
It urged journalists to move away from sensationalism and embrace responsible, rights-based reporting, while encouraging partnerships between the media, civil society and the creative industry to produce documentaries, short films and public education campaigns aimed at challenging stigma.
The Alliance further called on the Ministry of Finance, the Administrator of the DACF and MMDAs to strengthen transparency in disability-related funding, while urging national planning and employment agencies to integrate disability and mental health inclusion into development programmes.
It also appealed to development partners, foundations and private businesses to invest in inclusive employment, community-based mental health services, legal accountability and sustained anti-stigma campaigns.
The Mental Health Alliance said Ghana could no longer continue to celebrate policy commitments while persons with disabilities and people with mental health conditions remained excluded from jobs, essential services and decisions affecting their lives.
The statement followed a two-day convening organised under the joint auspices of ADD International and BasicNeeds-Ghana to reflect on findings from a two-country research project on disability inclusion activism commissioned and funded by ADD International.
The Ghana Alliance for Mental Health and Development is a national network of more than 128 civil society organisations, non-governmental organisations, community-based organisations and individuals with physical and mental disabilities engaged in mental health advocacy in Ghana.
By: Daniel Orlando/newsalertgh.com
