Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health in Rwanda

Around the globe, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern [1] in late 2019 and early 2020. Different health prevention measures were then put in place to contain the spread of the virus. In the absence of vaccines, some of these measures included social distancing, country-level lockdowns, and wearing masks among others [2].
Rwanda was the first country in the region to implement a total lockdown and other measures such as limiting social gatherings, closing universities and schools, and restricting mass gatherings in places like churches [3]. Even though these measures have helped to contain the spread and avoid the collapse of health systems [4], such measures also came with many drastic psychological changes in people’s lives. The impacts of COVID-19 on mental health require intense interventions and measures to mitigate the consequences on individuals, families, and communities.