A young Zimbabwean who has set off on a 17-day, 724 kilometer (450 mile)charity run says she hopes to raise awareness about the stigmatization of mental health patients in the southern African country.
Nell English Tuesday set off from the capital, Harare, headed for the resort town of Victoria Falls with initial hopes of raising $1,000 for a local mental health organization. She said she has already raised $2,500, a day into her run.
The 27-year-old said unlike causes such like animal welfare and cancer, mental health received little attention from donors.
Health and Child Care minister David Parirenyatwa last year said an estimated 1.3 million of Zimbabwe’s 13 million people have mental health issues.
Mental health, like other public health issues, suffers from poor government funding.-AP
