KIGALI, Sept 13 (The African Portal) – A Rwandan clinical psychotherapist and researcher, Celestin Mutuyimana, has been awarded the 2025 Ernst E. Boesch Prize for Cultural Psychology.
The award is one of the most prestigious international honours in the field and recognises innovative contributions to the promotion and advancement of cultural psychology.
Mutuyimana received the award on Thursday, September 11, in Berlin, Germany, from the Society of Cultural Psychology, a non-profit organisation that promotes research, education, and collaboration in the field.
The award is presented annually to one senior and one young researcher whose work demonstrates both scientific innovation and social impact.
Mutuyimana was the only young researcher selected from 62 applicants worldwide.
Speaking to the media after receiving the award, Mutuyimana said it places him among psychotherapists who “value the role of culture in their practice.”
“It opens avenues for more connections and the dissemination of my work. It is a brand of my continent, my country, and my community that we can produce science that can also inform international practices,” he said.
The Rwandan clinical psychotherapist has developed new measures to assess mental health in Africa, including the Clinical Aspects of Historical Trauma, the Cultural Scripts of Trauma Inventory, and the Ubuntu Psychological Scale.
“I have developed the Ubuntu Multisystemic Intervention to address post-traumatic disorders in Africa,” he said.
The Ubuntu Multisystemic Intervention is a treatment for post-traumatic disorders that uses African values of community and shared humanity, working with individuals, families, and local communities.
