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Article History

Received: 25 January 2026

Accepted: 1 April 2026

First Online: 20 May 2026

Declarations

:

: All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. The study protocol received ethical clearance from the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital Ethics Committee (Reference: LREC/06/10/1295). Written informed consent was obtained from the parents/legal guardians of all participants, and written assent was obtained from the participating adolescents prior to data collection.

: Not applicable. The manuscript does not contain data relating to any individual person in an identifiable form (e.g., individual details, images, or videos).

: Adolescents were not involved in the study design, research questions, or outcome measure selection. However, community advisory board members, including parents, teachers, and school administrators, provided input on culturally appropriate data collection methods and questionnaire content. The study questionnaire was pilot-tested with 50 adolescents from non-participating schools to ensure clarity and cultural appropriateness. Findings will be disseminated to participating schools through summary reports and presentations to administrators and parents’ associations. We plan to collaborate with the Lagos State Ministry of Education to translate findings into school-based mental health policies and programs.

: The authors declare no competing interests.