Wellness Buddy: An AI Mental Health Chatbot for Kenyan University Students

Mental health is a critical topic in Kenya, where access to mental health care is restricted and stigmatization of mental health concerns is common. The mental health task force under the Ministry of Health study maintains that considerable levels of depression, mental discomfort, substance misuse, and suicidal behaviour exist in Kenya. The adoption of chatbots in support for mental wellness has gained significant interest as a potential tool for delivering support and help to individuals with mental health challenges in low resource settings. The goal of this study is to outline the technique employed for developing a chatbot for this purpose. Neural networks with deep learning and transfer learning were applied in developing the chatbot's model.