About HIMI

HIMI was founded in February 2025 by a group of dedicated mental health professionals who recognised the urgent and growing need for mental health support in Nigeria. Like the rest of the world, we believe that there is no health without mental health.

Mental illness is common and universal. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), one in every four people will experience mental illness in their lifetime. This reality has become a day-to-day experience — as we walk along roads, streets, alleys, and pathways, we encounter those affected.

We are also confronted with this reality at home, in schools, in our places of work, markets, places of worship, in cities and villages. The wandering mentally ill persons are not only deeply troubling sights but also epitomise society's loss of hope in their reclamation.

Yet these visible cases constitute only the tip of the iceberg. The majority of people living with mild to moderate forms of mental illness — along with their families and close associates — continue to suffer in silence, out of fear of stigma.

The experience with mental illness is quite unique: in essence, it robs us of the essence of our personality and what makes us human. As much as it threatens the humanity of the affected, it also renders them voiceless.

This sad state of affairs is complicated by traditional beliefs towards mental illness. The few available mental health services are predominantly hospital-based, located only in some of the major towns and cities, and managed by a dwindling number of burnt-out mental health professionals.

HIMI exists to address this gap — to bring mental health care, education, and support directly to the communities that need it most. Through our programmes, we aim to build resilience, prevent relapse, and above all, restore hope.