Mogale City’s Executive Mayor, Lynn Pannall, has urged residents to open up about challenges they face in life as Suicide Prevention Month comes to an end.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that a suicide occurs every 40 seconds and an attempt at suicide is made every three seconds. South Africa has the eighth highest rate of suicide in the world.
“The South African Depression and Anxiety Group says that eight percent of non-natural deaths in the country are depression-related suicide,” the Mayor said.
“It is apparent that we need to work together to eliminate the incidence of suicide. The first step is for people burdened by challenges of life to find someone they can confide in, even though this does not completely remove the problem,” she added.
The Social Upliftment section of the municipality collaborates with organisations like LifeLine West Rand, the Old Oak Diverse West Rand, Families South Africa and the Cradle of Hope to provide services that range from trauma counselling and stress management to parenting skills. These services are the modest contribution that the municipality makes to restore hope and arm society with skills to cope with daily challenges.
Residents are encouraged to visit our social workers to get advice about the range of services they render. The public can contact our call centre on 0861 664 253 to get details about the nearest office of social workers in their areas.
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