Parents, schools and communities have been urged to give greater attention to boys' mental health amid growing concern that many are struggling under social pressure, low self-esteem and emotional challenges that are affecting both their wellbeing and education.
Speaking during a Radio Generation interview on Friday, Merishaw School Head Frasia Karua said many boys are growing up with rigid expectations of what it means to be male, yet they are rarely given the emotional support and guidance needed to help them deal with the challenges of adolescence.
She said society has spent years investing in programmes aimed at empowering girls, a move that has brought positive results but has also unintentionally left many boys feeling neglected.
"First of all, we have stereotyped and defined what being a boy or a male child is, and that then puts a lot of pressure on this young man to become that person that we think he must be, without even showing him how it is done. Secondly, when you look at the two genders, a lot of funding and resources have been put to strengthen the girl child. That has had an unintended impact on the boy child."
Karua said the pressure placed on boys has contributed to declining confidence, poor academic performance and reduced participation in school life.
"The boy child of today is shy, and shy means that he is not self-confident enough to stand up and be counted because the environment unintentionally keeps putting pressure on him. He is being suppressed."
She said available data points to a growing mental health challenge among adolescents, with boys carrying a large share of the burden.
"One in seven adolescents has a mental disorder, and of this, the boy child is more than half. In Kenya, the mental health survey for adolescents indicated that 43% of adolescents have some sort of mental disorder."
Karua said the findings, published in 2025 by the Ministry of Health together with other partners, should prompt parents, schools and policymakers to strengthen support systems for young people, especially boys.
Her remarks come as concern over adolescent mental health continues to grow in Kenya and around the world. The World Health Organization estimates that one in seven adolescents aged between 10 and 19 years lives with a mental disorder, with depression, anxiety and behavioural disorders among the leading causes of illness. Suicide also remains the third leading cause of death among people aged 15 to 29 years.
In Kenya, the Ministry of Health's National Baseline Mental Health Survey 2025 found that 43 per cent of adolescents show symptoms linked to mental health conditions.
An earlier Kenya National Adolescent Mental Health Survey also found that 12.2 per cent of adolescents met the diagnostic criteria for a mental disorder, with boys recording higher rates of conditions such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorder than girls.
Karua said families remain the first and most important source of emotional support for children, adding that parents and caregivers shape values, character and resilience from an early age.
"What defines the value, the character and the culture of a child is where they are brought up. This could be mothers, fathers or other caregivers who are involved in the child's care throughout the growth phases."
She said adolescence is one of the most difficult stages of growth because physical changes often happen faster than emotional maturity, making guidance from adults even more important.
"So this is a child who then needs guidance on how to utilise that sudden change. School and home, how are we helping them deal with this and cope with this new set of hormones that bring in certain emotions?"
Karua further urged parents and teachers to watch for warning signs such as withdrawal, aggression or sudden changes in behaviour, saying early intervention can help prevent more serious mental health problems.
She also encouraged what she described as "shoulder-to-shoulder conversations" with adolescent boys, saying relaxed and comfortable conversations can make it easier for them to open up about their emotions and seek help when they need it.