Geopolitical factors, foreign aid and mental health II: Value for money

Abstract

In the previous accompanying paper, we described geopolitical factors which affect mental health of individuals who suffer directly and indirectly. These disasters whether they are natural or man-made often attract significant amounts of aid and resources – financial and human. In addition, those who offer foreign aid need to be aware of where and how the aid is being spent. In this paper, we propose that aid giving agencies give due attention to the impact the aid should have on mental health of recipients. Global mental health has become a movement, but concerns remain about its efficacy. Therefore, it is imperative that any aid given is given and utilised in a culturally appropriate and culturally sensitive way. In an interconnected and interlinked world, it is likely that when one country or nation is affected by disasters or trauma, it will impact upon others around both directly and indirectly. We present a new measurement tool-CAPE Vulnerability Index which can be used to identify most vulnerable communities so that international aid may be more appropriately targeted. We believe that this index may go some way in assisting governments and policymakers in ascertaining the impact of their aid on the emotional and mental health of individuals. We suggest that their needs to be a ring-fencing of aid to ensure that population mental health is protected and enhanced with a strategic approach inbuilt into the foreign policy the focus needs to shift towards public mental health.

Prioritizing ‘equity’ in COVID-19 vaccine distribution through Global Health Diplomacy

“…The geopolitical determinants consist of governments, public policies and interests of the countries, geographies, and most importantly, the bilateral, regional, and multilateral engagements in terms of international relations. 30 The main purpose of understanding geopolitical determinants in this context is to identify the individual health outcomes as products of national policy at the level of local or original levels. This understanding may also help recognize and identify those policies that are being influenced by the geographical factors, leadership, and most importantly, bilateral, regional, or multilateral relations with the neighboring countries and distribution of required healthcare resources.…”

Global collective action in mental health financing: Allocation of development assistance for mental health in 142 countries, 2000–2015

“…Previous research describes the scarcity of humanitarian assistance for mental health (Persaud et al, 2018a) and an index has been proposed to facilitate its allocation based on compassion, assertive action, pragmatism, and evidence (Persaud et al, 2018b). A policy report identifies four main reasons for underinvestment in mental disorders in LMICs: lack of understanding of mental disorders, difficulties in measuring return on investment, stigma, and competing priorities (e.g.…”

Time for hard choices: A new global order for mental health

“…The CAPE Vulnerability Index (Persaud et al, 2020) offers a different perspective to rebalance and challenge prevailing narratives of how foreign aid is utilised. It provides a funding formula where foreign aid could be used as a tool to build mental health into foreign policy (Persaud et al, 2018). Foreign aid must do more than respond to humanitarian crisis.…”