The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has signed the Mental Health Bill into law.
According to Vanguard, the signing is the 1st Mental Health Act/ Law post Independence and will also replaced the Lunacy Act of 1958.
It would be recalled that the Senate passed the mental health legislation for second reading in 2019 and held public hearings the following year.
The National Mental Health Bill, 2021 was approved by the National Assembly on November 28th, 2022, and was given to Buhari for review and approval last week, according to a memo from the National Assembly Clerk.
The development has been confirmed by the President of the Association of Psychiatrists of Nigeria, APN, Prof Taiwo Obindo.
According to him, the signing is a victory for Mental Health Care and practice in this nation.
“A final culmination to over two decades of several efforts by the Association of Psychiatrists of Nigeria now has an Act/Law on Mental Health governance and we are now part of the global space with best global practice,” he stated.
