10-20% of children are affected by socio-emotional problems globally, of these, 90% of children and adolescents live in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) (1). Despite the tremendous burden of child mental health problems and widespread recognition of the importance of early identification and intervention for child mental health problems, a large number of these children in LMICs do not receive mental health services (2).

Schools offer an excellent opportunity for the early identification and management of children in need for mental health services. There is considerable evidence to suggest that both universal and targeted school-based interventions lead to better social, emotional and academic outcomes for children (3-5). Child mental health has also been identified as a priority within the WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (WHO EMRO) informing their development of an evidence-based manualized School Mental Health Programme (SMHP).

SHINE (School Health Implementation Network in the Eastern Mediterranean Region) is a regional collaboration to address the challenges of implementing school-based child mental health programmes in countries under the World Health Organization’s Eastern Mediterranean Region Office (EMRO).

SHINE is a part of Global Mental Health Research Hubs funded by National Institute of Mental Health USA to the University of Liverpool, UK. SHINE aims to facilitate the delivery of school-based child mental health services in the EMR by:

Conducting implementation research on the scale up of School Mental Health Programme (SMHP) in Pakistan, and translating research outputs for Iran, Jordan, UAE and Egypt.

Developing a collaborative network of institutions, researchers, policy partners and community stakeholders engaged in implementing child mental health with a focus upon the SMHP.

Building the capacity of the network in implementation research in child mental health.