Friendship Bench – For the first time in Germany

“For the first time in Germany – “Friendship Bench”, a community-based psychosocial counseling service in Friedensau

In a kick-off event on April 3, the psychiatrist and founder of Friendship Bench, Prof. Dr. Dixon Chibanda, presented the Friendship Bench model.¹ The model is known for its culturally sensitive, client-centered approach that focuses on practical, solution oriented counseling. In a lively presentation, Prof. Chibanda described the personal story that led to the idea of Friendship Bench and its vision: to have a Friendship Bench within walking distance for all. Numerous questions following the presentation reflected the great interest of the audience. A training group has already been formed for the training in German and English.

Mental health challenges, especially depression, is the third most common cause of sick leave in Germany.² Around 40 to 50 % of students in Germany suffer from overwork and stress, with almost one in 10 students showing signs of depression.  Friedensau Adventist University (FAU) also reflects the social and individual challenges of our time.³ In order to provide the most suitable prevention and intervention services possible, the Friendship Bench model will be available to all members of the university – students and staff – in German and English for the first time in the summer semester 2025.

Friendship Bench was developed in Zimbabwe, but is now very popular not only in countries of the Global South, but also in countries of the Global North: for example in the USA, Canada and the UK. Friendship Bench is now also represented at the FAU in Germany for the first time. The model became known worldwide because it does not use academically trained counselors, but – especially in its original version – relied on the life experience and empathy of grandmothers. In the meantime, however, the counseling approach is generally implemented by interested and committed laypeople. The effectiveness of the Friendship Bench is well-documented, with over 100 peer-reviewed publications in top scientific journals validating its success and adaptability across diverse settings.

Based on a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Friendship Bench and Friedensau Adventist University in the summer of 2024, Prof. Dr. Dr. Silvia Hedenigg and Prof. Andreas Bochmann, Ph.D., have completed the three-stage training, translated the teaching materials into German and are registered as Friendship Bench trainers. Prof. Hedenigg and Prof. Bochmann will be glad to provide further information: ">; "> | More: Friendship Bench (Silvia Hedenigg).

[1] https://www.friendshipbenchzimbabwe.org/ (Access: 2 April 2025).

[2] https://www.aok.de/fk/betriebliche-gesundheit/grundlagen/fehlzeiten/ueberblick-fehlzeiten-report/ (Access: 3 April 2025).

[3] https://www.tk.de/resource/blob/2149886/e5bb2564c786aedb3979588fe64a8f39/2023-tk-gesundheitsreport-data.pdf (Access: 3 April 2025).