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The Association of Psychiatrists of Nigeria (APN) has renewed its call on the federal government to fully implement the country’s mental health law, warning that the gap between legislation and actual service delivery continues to undermine mental healthcare.
The association said Nigeria already has a legal framework capable of transforming mental health services, but that much of that framework has yet to translate into functioning institutions, adequate funding and accessible treatment.
In a statement signed by APN President, Dr Veronica Oluyemisi Nyamali, and Secretary General, Prof. Kingsley Mayowa Okonoda, psychiatrists argued that the government should focus on making the existing law work rather than rushing to create another one.
The association questions whether all institutional structures required by law had been fully created and adequately funded.
She also asked what practical improvements people living with mental health problems and their families have experienced since the law came into force.
Because implementation remains a concern
Nigeria’s National Mental Health Act 2021 received presidential assent on December 28, 2022. The legislation replaced the country’s outdated Lunacy Act framework and established a legal basis to protect the rights of people with mental health problems.
Among other objectives, the law provides for the creation of a Department of Mental Health Services within the Federal Ministry responsible for Health and seeks to promote integrated, community-based and rights-focused mental healthcare.
However, independent research published in 2026 found continued gaps in implementation, including weak funding, limited coordination between federal and state authorities, inadequate monitoring, and shortages of mental health professionals.
The researchers found that Nigeria’s policy trajectory has shifted considerably from the custodial approach associated with the Lunacy Ordinance of 1916 and subsequently the Lunacy Act of 1958 towards a rights-based framework, but that implementation has not kept pace with legislative reform.
Psychiatrists oppose a premature amendment
The APN also expressed reservations about attempts to amend the Mental Health Act before its existing provisions have been adequately implemented and evaluated.
The association’s position is part of a separate federal government initiative to change legislation to decriminalize attempted suicide.
The Federal Executive Council endorsed the government’s position on the proposed reform in 2026, with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare saying the change would shift the response to attempted suicide from punishment to treatment, support and timely intervention.
The APN had welcomed the proposed reform in August, but at the same time called for full implementation of the existing law and greater access to affordable mental healthcare.
What the law intended to change
The legislation was introduced after years of criticism of Nigeria’s previous mental health law, which had been widely seen as outdated and inconsistent with contemporary human rights standards.
The reform process dates back more than two decades. Efforts to replace the old Lunacy Act began in the early 2000s, while a new bill was reintroduced in 2013. Further legislative effort culminated in the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Bill of 2019 and ultimately presidential assent to the National Mental Health Act in December 2022.
The law aims to promote humane treatment, protect fundamental rights, improve access to treatment, support rehabilitation and encourage community-based mental health services.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has described the legislation as an important foundation for Nigeria’s mental health reform, while noting the need to translate the legal framework into practical action.
Financing and access remain major challenges
A 2026 review of Nigeria’s mental health policy found that mental healthcare continues to face significant funding and workforce limitations.
The review estimated that only around 10-15% of people requiring mental health care receive adequate care, while Nigeria has a serious shortage of psychiatrists and other specialized professionals.
Researchers have identified inadequate funding, fragmented coordination between federal states, weak monitoring systems, and insufficient integration of providers at the community level as major barriers to implementation.
The federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, meanwhile, says the government is working to strengthen mental healthcare, integrate services into the wider healthcare system and improve financial protection for people needing treatment.
APN calls for action
Psychiatrists call on government agencies to identify and remove administrative, financial, regulatory and coordination barriers that impede effective implementation of the law.
They also want mental health care to be treated as an issue that extends beyond hospitals, noting its consequences for families, schools, workplaces, communities, productivity and social stability.
The association said the final test of the law should not be whether legislation exists on paper, but whether Nigerians can get accessible, affordable and rights-based mental healthcare when they need it.
Context: How the problem started
Nigeria’s modern mental health reform effort grew out of dissatisfaction with the old Lunacy Act of 1958, which remained in place for decades and criticized for its custodial approach and inadequate protection of the rights of people with mental health problems.
Efforts to replace the outdated framework began in the early 2000s. A bill was withdrawn in 2009 before new legislative efforts emerged in 2013.
The reform process gained further momentum following the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Act 2019, with technical support from stakeholders, including WHO. The bill finally passed the National Assembly before receiving presidential assent in December 2022.
The new law was intended to move Nigeria from a predominantly institutional and custodial model towards rights-based, integrated and community-oriented mental healthcare.
The central problem now identified by psychiatrists and researchers is the familiar gap between passing a law and building the institutions, funding mechanisms, workforce, and services needed to make the law work.
