Mental 360 Wellness Limited

Mental 360 is a non-profit social enterprise established in 2016 by Bright Shitemi, who founded the organization after his own struggles with depression and suicidal ideation. The goal of Mental 360 is to promote mental health awareness, reduce stigma, and provide accessible and affordable support services to youth and at-risk communities in Kenya.

According to WHO, 1 in 4 Kenyans live with a mental health condition, but awareness remains low, with only about 10% seeking professional treatment. Most instead turn to traditional healers or religious leaders. Mental 360 aims to address this gap through youth-focused programs and community engagement.

Since 2016, Mental 360 has reached over 2 million Kenyans through awareness events and campaigns. A national helpline offering psychological first aid has supported over 10,000 people. The organization also runs in-person and virtual support groups and provides individual counseling sessions on an affordable, tiered payment model.

Key focus areas include stigma reduction, improving mental health literacy, and capacity-building. Mental 360 takes a creative approach, using mediums like art, music, poetry, and storytelling to authentically engage target groups. Interventions are co-designed based on human-centered design and the principle "Conversations Save Lives."

VISION: Healthy Minds, Healthy Communities

MISSION: Strengthening psychosocial support systems for better mental health

PROGRAMS

Mental 360's current programs include:

1. Boma Wellness Clubs in Schools: Youth-led clubs in secondary schools and universities that serve as safe spaces for open dialogue, education, and support. With mental health challenges often arising in the teen years, these clubs help students develop resilience.

2. Community Wellness Centers: Grassroots community hubs providing psychological first aid, support groups, and referral services. By training community members and peer champions (Rafikis) to run the centers, Mental 360 ensures sustainability.

3. The Cradle Arts Festival: An annual festival utilizing performance art to spark dialogue around mental health and direct people to support services.

IMPACT

Over the past 8 years, Mental 360 has directly supported over 2,000,000 Kenyans through counseling and outreach, while influencing policy changes like Kenya's 2018 Mental Health Amendment Bill. As the organization looks ahead to its 10 year anniversary and beyond, the focus remains on embedding sustainable mental health infrastructure across Kenyan society. By 2030, we plan to provide 30 million youth with access to contextualized peer and professional psychosocial support across Africa.