The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will host the 3rd annual Mental Health Awareness Conference for the Africa West Area. The event will be held in two locations. The first session will be on 28 October 2023 in Benin City Nigeria, and the second session on 4 November in Abidjan Cote d’Ivoire. The conference session in Abidjan will be presented in French.
Both sessions of the conference can be accessed on-line. The conference is free for all in-person and on-line attendees, and it will be available to all who desire to attend. Conference attendees will hear from experts on mental health throughout West Africa. The theme of this year’s conference is “Depression- Prevention, Responding, and Supporting.”
The objective of the conference is to help leaders gain an increased understanding of how to prevent depression as well as how to overcome and cope with depression. It will also provide tools on how to support those that struggle with depression and provide leaders with information necessary to identify and access Family Services resources for mental health issues.
The contributors and participants in the conference come with substantial expertise and a wide diversity of experience. They are focused on strengthening and supporting leaders to help them provide the necessary supports for the individuals and families that they serve.
'Mental health education is one of the best ways to increase awareness and encourage self-help seeking behavior, while simultaneously reducing the stigma of mental health issues,' said Tamara Esi Dadson, Family Services Manager for the Church. 'It is important that we respond to the social and emotional needs of our communities'.'
The 2023 Mental Health Awareness Conference is presented by Family Services of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The conference session in Nigeria will be held at the Ikpokpan Stake Center, 15 Jos Razuaye Estate Road, Benin City, Edo Nigeria. The session in Cote d’Ivoire will be held in the Cocody Stake Center at 118 Riviera Attoban, Abidjan.
Both sessions of the Conference will be broadcast on Zoom. The meeting ID for the Benin City session is 931 8463 2011 and the password is 211023. The Abidjan session meeting ID is 970-7190-0320, and the password is 041123.
