IMAGE Plus project is implemented by a consortium led by Terre des Hommes Netherlands in partnership with SKS Foundation, Pollisree, and TdH Lausanne supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Through this project around 9,000 married girls and their family from 3 districts in Rangpur Division named Nilphamari, Gaibandha and Kurigram are receiving support in family planning, mother and child health care, sexual and reproductive health rights, nutrition, gender based violence, and livelihood training and income generating activities.

The high prevalence of sexual violence to which young girls and women are exposed and the correspondingly high rate of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) following such violence, renders women the largest single group of people affected by this disorder. Depression, anxiety, somatic symptoms and high rates of comorbidity are significantly related to interconnected and co-occurrent risk factors such as gender based roles, stressors and negative life experiences and events. (Gender Disparities in Mental Health, WHO).

Though there is no survey conducted on mental health status of the project participants, IMAGE plus project increasingly felt an emerging need for training project field staff on understanding mental health needs and how psychosocial support can be provided to the early married girls and their family as an integral part for achieving project goal.

In this context, Innovation for Wellbeing Foundation (IWF) for last 4 years building capacity of its project staff and selected change makers who are now providing psychosocial support at grassroots level. These trained people are only resources to access mental health support in project area.