Strengthening mental health care in Somalia through artificial intelligence: opportunities, challenges, and a roadmap for implementation

Abstract

Mental health needs in Somalia are substantial, yet access to timely, high-quality care remains constrained by workforce shortages, limited infrastructure and financing, fragmented services, weak health information systems, and persistent sociocultural barriers. Artificial intelligence (AI) may complement mental health system strengthening in this fragile and resource-constrained setting. This Perspective examines potential applications of AI across Somalia's mental health system and considers the associated implementation, ethical, governance, and equity challenges. Potential applications include AI-assisted screening, clinical decision support, telepsychiatry, digital interventions, predictive analytics, surveillance, health-system planning, and research. Responsible adoption will require locally representative data, appropriate infrastructure and governance, workforce capacity, sociocultural adaptation, equitable access, and sustainable financing. This Perspective proposes a phased roadmap progressing from infrastructure and governance to pilot testing, capacity building, implementation research, and conditional national scale-up. AI should augment rather than replace mental health professionals and remain integrated within broader health-system investment. With local adaptation, community engagement, and continuous evaluation, AI could contribute to more accessible, equitable, resilient, and human-centered mental health care in Somalia.