How climate change is impacting adolescent mental health in Madagascar | D+C - Development + Cooperation

The authors found that climate change is having a profound impact on mental health among adolescents in southern Madagascar, one of the most severely climate change-affected regions in the world. People there have suffered from cyclones, extreme heat and prolonged periods of drought. This is turning fertile land into desert and depleting water sources, leading to food and water insecurity. Since most people in this region are subsistence farmers or pastoralists, they are significantly affected by changes in weather and climate.

In order to investigate the impacts of climate change on adolescent mental health, the researchers conducted surveys and initiated group discussions. They talked to 83 adolescents aged 10 to 24 in six rural villages outside the city of Ambovombe in the Androy region. All of the participants were experiencing multidimensional poverty. Less than 14 % had electricity at home, and none of them lived in a household that owned a motorbike, car, truck or computer.

The results indicate that mental health problems are widespread among young people. A staggering 82 % of the adolescents showed probable depression. Between 76 % and 87 % exhibited probable generalised anxiety disorder. The adolescents also had high levels of climate change concern.

At the heart of this mental health crisis lies severe food insecurity. Within the previous 12 months, 90 % of the adolescents had experienced their household running out of food. 95 % reported having been hungry but not eating, and 69 % had endured an entire day without food.