Annotation: Developing child mental health services in developing countries

There is an urgent need to pay attention to the mental health of children i n developing countries. Professionals confronted with this task face a numb er of challenges. Services have to be planned in a rational way, keeping in mind the needs of local populations. These needs will often exceed the ava ilable resources, and it will be necessary to set priorities. Feasible and cost-effective models of service delivery then have to be developed to meet these needs. This annotation provides a framework within which mental heal th needs of children can be assessed, priorities established, and services organised. This is illustrated with examples of relevant activities underta ken in low-income developing countries over the last two decades.