By Tendai Makaripe
HARARE, Zimbabwe — Fathers Against Abuse (FAA) on Sunday hosted a mental-health dialogue with men and boys at Believers of Christ International Church, Epworth, urging candid conversations about stress, depression and substance misuse and how they can fuel gender-based violence.
The session created a confidential space for congregants to share personal struggles at home and work.
Facilitators pressed participants to seek help early, build peer support and challenge harmful norms that equate manhood with silence and aggression.
“In Zimbabwe, the church constitutes about 82% of the total population, and engaging churches is an easy way of reaching out to men,” FAA team leader Alois Nyamazana said.
“There is a lot of mental-health stigma in churches, and it is a subject that is hardly talked about. Usually, when someone complains about mental-health challenges or shows signs of mental-health challenges, church people only resort to prayer without offering further support.”
Nyamazana said untreated mental-health problems can heighten irritability and violent behaviour, especially when paired with drug and substance misuse.
“Talking about mental health fosters positive masculinities among men as they learn to resist social pressure to be aggressive and ignore emotions,” he said.
“It helps them to rethink and redefine their concept of manhood.”
FAA encouraged churches, communities and workplaces to host similar dialogues and to build referral pathways to counseling, clinical care and social services. The group said it plans follow-up sessions with church leaders to strengthen prevention messages and survivor support.
Faith communities reach millions of Zimbabweans every week, giving churches a pivotal role in tackling stigma and normalising help-seeking.
One of the program’s attendees, Tatenda Mutero, said pairing prayer with practical support—screening, basic counselling, peer groups and warm referrals—can reduce the risk of violence in households.
“Community mental-health programs, including lay-counsellor models piloted in Zimbabwe, show that structured talk therapy can ease depression and anxiety at scale when trusted local institutions host or endorse services,” he said.
Analysts warned that rising drug and substance misuse among youth and adults can escalate conflict at home, making early intervention crucial.
FAA says church-based dialogues can bridge these gaps by giving men language for their emotions, offering tools to de-escalate conflict and linking families to care.
The organisation invited congregations to partner on future sessions and to train focal persons who can spot red flags, support survivors, and refer men to evidence-based care before crises turn violent.
