On October 10th of each year, the world observes World Mental Health Day—an occasion established by the World Health Organization and the World Federation for Mental Health in the 1990s.
This day aims to raise awareness regarding mental and psychological health issues, mobilize international and local efforts to support individuals facing psychological crises, and emphasize that mental well-being is an integral part of public health and human welfare.
The Syrian Future Movement believes that the human being is central to the process of stewardship and nation-building, and that preserving the self and the mind is one of the five supreme objectives (Maqasid) within the civilizational approach of Islam and all religions.
A stable and healthy human psyche is a fundamental prerequisite for a sound civil society and for effectively shouldering the responsibilities of the transitional period. In its civilizational essence, Islam links spiritual tranquility and mental soundness with development and productivity; consequently, caring for the mental health of Syrians is a national duty and a religious and humanitarian imperative that lies at the heart of the comprehensive recovery process.
The Syrian Future Movement recognizes that Syria is currently navigating an exceptional transitional phase and facing major challenges aimed at moving beyond eras of tyranny and armed conflict toward the construction of a state governed by the rule of law and institutions.
While attention is often focused on stabilizing security and the economy, the Movement’s field assessments reveal a silent, mounting societal mental health crisis. Years of prolonged war and displacement—along with the accompanying trauma and loss of livelihoods—have left deep psychological scars on millions of Syrians, particularly among youth, children, former detainees, and women. This critical phase demands a perfect balance between restoring political and physical infrastructure and healing the wounds of the Syrian people, who have been burdened by successive crises.
The mental health sector in Syria currently faces a host of formidable challenges, most notably:
- An acute shortage of specialized personnel: The emigration of the vast majority of qualified psychiatrists and mental health professionals over the past decade.
- Inadequate infrastructure and funding: A lack of specialized psychological and behavioral support departments and programs within health institutions and primary care centers.
- The gap between relief and development: The concentration of most international aid on urgent relief needs—such as food and general medical care—at the expense of long-term community-based psychosocial rehabilitation programs.
- Cultural and societal barriers: The persistence of social stigma surrounding mental illness and seeking psychiatric care, which drives many to suffer in silence.
In light of these challenges, and guided by a forward-looking vision aimed at civil and societal reconstruction, the Syrian Future Movement makes the following recommendations:
- Integrating mental health into sovereign recovery plans: Urging authorities and executive bodies during the transitional phase to incorporate mental healthcare as a cornerstone of national recovery strategies and to link it to international development funds and grants.
- Implementing sustainable psychosocial rehabilitation programs: Launching integrated national projects to rehabilitate those most affected by the conflict, and linking psychosocial support with economic and vocational empowerment programs to ensure their reintegration into society’s productive cycle.
- Capacity building and local workforce development: Encouraging Syrian universities and institutes to introduce accelerated educational and training programs in psychological counseling, and collaborating with the World Health Organization to train local personnel in primary healthcare centers.
- Integrating psychological counseling into the educational environment: Activating the role of psychological counselors in schools and universities, and devising educational activities that help young people overcome the effects of past educational and social instability.
- National awareness campaigns to break the stigma: Organizing extensive media and cultural campaigns—involving civil, religious, and media institutions—to spread a culture of psychological awareness and emphasize the role of psychological well-being in the civilizational development of the individual and society.
The Syrian Future Movement affirms that the well-being of the Syria of the future begins with the well-being of its people; the aspired civilizational renaissance cannot be fully realized without reassured souls and sound minds moving confidently toward a better tomorrow.
