Alpha Ssali brings young athletes' mental health voice to Soul Picnic

Uganda’s mental health conversation is moving beyond breaking the silence to asking what people do with that conversation once it has been started.

That will be at the heart of the 2026 Soul Picnic, which will take place on September 20 at Kampala Parents School Sports Grounds under the theme Boldly Breaking the Silence.

The event will bring together mental health advocates, wellness practitioners, young people, parents, leaders and members of the public for conversations, music, movement, games and wellness activities.

The Soul Picnic, an initiative of Soul Foundation Uganda, was launched in 2025 as a different approach to mental health awareness, creating an informal space where people could talk, connect and participate without the clinical atmosphere often associated with mental health discussions. 

Its inaugural edition at Canopy Gardens, Mutungo last year , attracted more than 200 participants, including wellness practitioners, advocates and community leaders. 

The 2026 edition seeks to build on that foundation by challenging people to take mental wellbeing into the spaces where they live, work, lead and raise families.

Express Football Club forward and youth mental health advocate Alpha Thierry Ssali will bring the perspective of young people and mental challenges athletes in Uganda face , while the likes of Moses Mpanga will provide practitioner perspectives. 

Barbara Mugeni of Avanah Moms will add the voice of parents and the realities families face.

The organisers say the range of voices is deliberate, reflecting the belief that mental wellbeing cannot be left to mental health professionals alone.

Geraldine Opoka, founder of Soul Foundation and a wellness and fitness practitioner, said Uganda had made progress in creating awareness around mental health, but the next phase required people to carry the conversation into everyday life.

“We have come a long way in creating awareness around mental health. We have started conversations, challenged stigma and made it easier to say, I’m not okay, but awareness was never meant to be the destination,” Opoka said.

“Now comes the harder part, carrying the mantle into our own lives and the spaces we influence,” she said.

Opoka said the Soul Picnic was intended to remind people that mental wellbeing was not the responsibility of one profession, generation or institution.

As the country continues to confront conversations around stress, isolation, emotional wellbeing and the pressures of everyday life, the organisers hope the picnic can provide a space for people to meet, listen, heal and grow together.

The event will run from midday to 7pm at Kampala Parents School Sports Grounds.

For Opoka, the ultimate goal is not simply to have more people talking about mental health, but to see those conversations reflected in how people care for themselves and one another.

“As we continue to break the silence, let’s carry the conversation forward into action, into our spaces, and into the way we show up for ourselves and one another,” she said.