South African Depression and Anxiety Group

The South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) is Africa's largest mental health support and advocacy group and is committed to quality counseling, outreach and capacity building work throughout South Africa. Since 1997, SADAG has initiated rural development projects in communities where there are little or no mental health care services available. These programs have been recognized and endorsed by the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) and the World Health Organization (WHO)

"Speaking Books" is a project developed by SADAG in an attempt to raise awareness and help alleviate the pandemics of AIDS, Malaria and TB in South Africa. The "Speaking Books" offer a combination of written text and short audio messages. The voices used are those of local celebrities, singers, musicians and sportsmen. While "Speaking Books" are a relatively novel form of approaching people, they have the potential to become effective tools in spreading critical health information to disadvantaged or difficult to reach communities.