The Loneliest Continent: Epidemic Of Social Isolation Hits Africans As Western Culture Spreads

Loneliness has been a changeless characteristic of Macyleen’s life since she was 9 years aged and her mother died successful their location municipality successful Zimbabwe. She was sent to unrecorded pinch her father, but he worked distant from location a lot. His caller woman resented his different children and was emotionally abusive.

Macyleen lived pinch 3 half-siblings, but they were overmuch older. “We were location to past and conscionable get to nan adjacent day. I knew I was alone,” she recalls.

That emotion has ne'er really near Macyleen, who is now 33, building a childminding business and bringing up 4 children connected her ain successful Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth), South Africa.

There are galore group successful Africa experiencing loneliness, for illustration Macyleen. According to a report successful June by nan World Health Organization, Africa is nan loneliest continent connected Earth.

Almost a 4th (24%) of group location reported emotion lonely, and adolescents aged 13 to 17 are nan worst affected, nan WHO says. The adjacent highest rates of loneliness are successful nan eastbound Mediterranean (21%), followed by south-east Asia (18%). Europe has nan lowest rate, astatine astir 10%.

The study comes aft nan WHO declared loneliness a pressing “global nationalist wellness concern” and launched an world commission connected societal connection to analyse nan problem.

Africa is traditionally viewed arsenic having a collectivist civilization that prioritises nan needs and goals of nan group arsenic a full complete individuals. But this is changing.

Dr Cleopa Mailu, a personnel of nan committee and a erstwhile Kenyan wellness minister, says: “My first guidance [to nan findings] was 1 of rejection.

“I unrecorded successful Africa and thin to deliberation nan nine we are coming is nan 1 of nan 1950s aliases 60s, and that there’s much loneliness successful nan occidental hemisphere. I came to realise that emotion I had was conscionable an internalisation of our past.”

Loneliness is not recognised arsenic a problem successful Africa, says Mailu, and group do not want to talk it. Instead, societal wellbeing has been neglected successful wellness policies successful favour of focusing connected communicable and non-communicable diseases.

Meanwhile, cities connected nan continent are quickly expanding; complete nan adjacent 3 decades, Africa’s municipality organization will double, expanding from 700 cardinal to 1.4 cardinal by 2050.

A mother carries her girl done a marketplace successful Anambra, Nigeria. Factors specified arsenic changes successful nine and nan costs of surviving are exacerbating isolation. Photograph: Mosa’ab Elshamy/AP

“We ne'er came live to nan truth that we person been globalising ourselves – surviving successful conditions which are not accepted to nan African people,” adds Mailu. “In a way, we rejected nan conception that there’s loneliness and isolation successful nan continent.”

Mailu attributes higher levels of loneliness to a changing society, and increasing urbanisation and globalisation, arsenic good arsenic caller governance structures, migration, poorness and changing views of wealthiness and success.

“In accepted settings, wealthiness was defined differently,” says Mailu. “You conscionable needed to person a cattle and a workplace aliases location to cultivate. Everybody was nan aforesaid level.

“Now location are different levels of poverty,” he says. “There is simply a batch of unit and you find group are not together.”

Macyleen tin place pinch this. She says nan Africa she grew up successful is very different from nan 1 she lives successful today.

People are copying occidental culture, she says: “It’s each astir maine aliases my contiguous people. Maybe that’s 1 of nan reasons group are becoming much selfish.”

Macyleen finds it difficult to unfastened up to people, fearing judgement complete being a azygous mother to children pinch different fathers, each of whom abandoned her. She besides has small opportunity to socialise, fixed that she is trying to build her ain business and bring up 4 children pinch nary financial help.

“I struggle pinch accent and things are getting difficult successful South Africa. There’s a batch of xenophobia and I person this dense emotion that I don’t beryllium present immoderate more,” she says.

“If thing happens, I person to beryllium nan mother and nan begetter [to my children]. It gets really lonely, particularly because I’m frightened of dating. Who tin I find to trust?

“The world is changing truthful fast,” she adds. “And there’s excessively overmuch unit to do well, but we are successful an situation that is not helping us.”

Lateefat Odunuga, a scientist and world advisor for nan African Network of Youth Policy Experts, agrees that Africa is changing from a continent pinch galore group successful close-knit communities to 1 wherever that accepted measurement of life is being erased by urbanisation.

She says loneliness is simply a pressing rumor for young group crossed nan continent. “Young group are frustrated,” she says. “There’s a batch of unemployment, supplier abuse, intelligence wellness issues. We’re seeing a batch of young group dying [by] suicide.”

A Zimbabwean organization wellness worker pinch nan Friendship Bench Project welcomes a imaginable customer successful a suburb of Harare. Photograph: Cynthia R Matonhodze

The accrued costs of living, she adds, intends group would alternatively enactment astatine location than walk money connected taste events, for example.

She blames exertion for contributing to nan problem. More group are utilizing apps specified arsenic TikTok for intermezo and, done her believe successful Nigeria, she has heard of individuals turning to ChatGPT to cheque if they are depressed, alternatively of talking to a family member, for example.

While loneliness mightiness not beryllium recognised connected a wide ground successful Africa, location are organisations dedicated to tackling it, she says. She cites Friendship Bench, an attack first developed successful Zimbabwe that trains organization wellness workers to supply basal cognitive behavioural therapy pinch an accent connected activity scheduling and group support. The exemplary has been replicated successful countries passim nan world.

The WHO study highlighted nan AgeWell peer-to-peer support programme successful Cape Town. Older volunteers were trained to supply relationship and institution to little capable older residents successful their organization done regular location visits. South African participants reported little loneliness, and location was a important summation successful societal participation.

“Depending connected really committed we are to this work,” says Odunuga, “there mightiness beryllium a early for america to tackle societal isolation and loneliness.

“But if we don’t bring group together,” she warns, “we are doomed. We’re going to person a batch of problems beyond intelligence health. It will beryllium a disaster and a full shame to humanity.”