Kites of all sorts were seen at this year’s Cape Town Kite Festival at Melkbosstrand Beach on Sunday 9 October – all in a bid to raise funds for Cape Mental Health to fund essential free mental health services.
When TygerBurger arrived at the festival, the beach was jam-packed with visitors flying their kites as the wind played along.
Real-life and online activities such as community flies and an inclusive EduKite competition for learners were the highlight for the children who attended the festival.
Alan Lewis, one of the festival goers who resides in Milnerton, said this year’s kite festival was one for the books.
“I attend every kite festival and even though there weren’t very big kites at this year’s festival, the wind and energy of visitors made up for it. My children love the festival and we always bring our kites along. It has become a family tradition now,” he told TygerBurger.
The Cape Mental Health’s annual flagship event takes place to raise funds to enable this non-profit organisation to continue providing essential free mental healthcare services and interventions to those who are most in need.
Their investment in children and youth, in particular, helps prevent mental illness that can progress into adulthood and limit the potential and dreams for the future of young people.
According to Dr Ingrid Daniels, CEO of Cape Mental Health and Immediate Past President of the World Federation for Mental Health, “failure to ensure that every child and adolescent has access to emotional support and mental health services will be a failure of our society to prevent this generation from being resilient adults with good mental health.”
Cape Town Kite Festival is the oldest kiting event in Africa and has been proudly hosted by Cape Mental Health since 1994, to raise funds and promote mental wellness.
Edukite competition
The theme of the 2022 Cape Town Kite Festival was #FlyYourDreams. This year they hosted an inclusive Edukite competition: a kite-decorating and kite-making competition for primary school learners from mainstream schools and schools for children with special educational needs, with amazing prizes.
“We want our children to have happy dreams and a hopeful vision of themselves and their place in the world. But just like little kites that are tossed around in strong winds, children also face challenges in a world that can be risky and frightening. Research across the world has shown that even young children are experiencing anxiety and that this is the biggest mental health issue for children.”
World Mental Health Day
World Mental Health Day (WMHD) was celebrated on 10 October.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) reported in June that in 2019, one in every eight people globally was living with a mental disorder. This figure increased significantly because of the Covid-19 pandemic. At the same time, the services, skills and funding available for mental health have remained in short supply, and fall far below what is needed, especially in low and middle-income countries.
The Covid-19 pandemic has created a global crisis for mental health, fuelling short- and long-term stresses and undermining the mental health of millions. The WHO reported that estimates put the rise in both anxiety and depressive disorders at 26% and 28% respectively during the first year of the pandemic. At the same time, mental health services have been severely disrupted and the treatment gap for mental health conditions has widened.
“Stigma and discrimination continue to be a barrier to social inclusion and access to the right care; importantly, we can all play our part in increasing awareness about interventions that can prevent mental health conditions. World Mental Health Day is an opportunity to do that collectively. We envision a world in which mental health is valued, promoted and protected; where everyone has an equal opportunity to enjoy mental health and to exercise their human rights; and where everyone can access the mental health care they need.”
Donations welcome
Not keen on flying a kite or participating online? Then donate as all proceeds go to Cape Mental Health to provide essential free mental healthcare services and continue the remote tele-counselling and mental health interventions across the Western Cape.
For more info and to make a donation, visit www.capementalhealth.co.za/FlyYourDreams or follow @CTKiteFest on social media.
