09 January 2025

Yeming overcomes bullying at school, thanks to mental health lessons

Thirteen-year-old Yeming stands on her own by the window of an empty classroom at Zhangqiu No 4 High School, Shandong. She looks out across the vast school campus, which hosts 9,900 students in huge red-brick buildings. She watches other students walking between yellowing trees beneath her, their footsteps echoing...
31 December 2024

'Now, I feel like I want to live my life and be happy.'

Embedded video follows "I felt completely lost and didn't know how I would go on," says Zihan, 17, who struggled with mental health after losing her mum. Zihan was helped by Wenhao, 16, a UNICEF-trained peer supporter, and is now moving forward.
30 December 2024

Zihan rebuilds her mental health with help from a peer supporter

After a long day at school, Zhu Zihan, 17, returns to her family home in an apartment building in Zhangqiu, Shandong Province. She climbs the plain concrete stairs to the sixth floor and knocks on the last door. Her father, Zhu Chulin, welcomes her. It’s a bitingly cold autumn evening but warm and cosy inside. The...
18 July 2024

Building confidence, building the future

Embedded video follows "The life skills course helped me communicate and interact more courageously with people at the internship," shares Haojie, 19. UNICEF and partners are promoting life skills in vocational education to equip adolescents with life skills for their future.
16 July 2024

‘A key to open the door to the outside world’

Embedded video follows "The life skills course transformed me into a brave, confident and optimistic person," says Junjun,16. UNICEF and the Ministry of Education are promoting life skills in vocational education across China, including through a series of dedicated courses run in schools.
02 March 2022

Child Health and Development

Challenges, China has made remarkable progress in the past 30 years in improving child and maternal health. However, there is still work to be done to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and China’s Healthy China 2030 Action Plan. The major challenges UNICEF, the Government of China, and partners are working...
12 October 2021

Harnessing the uplifting power of music

What would you do to boost your mental health if you felt anxious, worried or depressed? For many people, music is often high on the list, because the right melody and lyrics can soothe and heal a worrying mind. A group of young people have taken it to another level. Supported by UNICEF, they rewrote the lyrics of...
12 October 2021

We need everyone to help break the silence around mental health – UNICEF

BEIJING, 12 October 2021, –, At an event held today, UNICEF called for societies to listen to young people, who are increasingly raising their voices for mental health, and to commit to supporting their psychological well-being. The event was co-hosted by the National Center for Mental Health and UNICEF China, wit...
12 October 2021

The making of A Stronger You

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12 October 2021

A Stronger You music video

Embedded video follows Lyrics:Perry Kan, Li Simo, Wang Zelong, Yu Xinwei, 小末子Sophies Composing:Dieter Bohlen Performance:Perry Kan, Li Simo, Wang Zelong, Yu Xinwei, Siena Wu Arrangement:Yang Bowen (Radiax) Lyrics: I used to think that there was magic That could make all my troubles go away But as I grow up, I realise the world doesn’t work that…
12 October 2021

The State of the World's Children 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns about the mental health of a generation of children. But the pandemic may represent the tip of a mental health iceberg – an iceberg we have ignored for far too long. The State of the World’s Children 2021 examines child, adolescent and caregiver mental health. It focuses o...
11 October 2021

The State of the World's Children 2021 Executive Summary

The COVID-19 pandemic has raised huge concerns for the mental health of an entire generation of children and young people and parents and caregivers. But the pandemic may represent only the tip of a mental health iceberg – an iceberg we have ignored for far too long. For the first time in its history, The State of...