Friendship Bench Appoints Dr. Esther Tumbare As Chief Executive Officer
Friendship Bench is pleased to announce the appointment of Esther Tumbare as its new Chief Executive Officer, effective August 1st, 2025. Esther succeeds Dr. Dixon Chibanda, the founder of Friendship Bench, who has transitioned into a board advisory role to support Friendship Bench’s global strategic work.
Esther brings over 25 years of experience as a leader and advocate in the public health and mental health sectors. She has a proven track record of advancing access to quality mental healthcare and support, through her work with various organizations in senior roles including, IntraHealth International, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Harvard University.
“I am driven by the belief that accessible mental healthcare is a fundamental human right, and I am excited to lead Friendship Bench in its next chapter of growth and impact, expanding our reach to those who need it most,” said Esther Tumbare. Over the coming weeks, Esther will be familiarising herself with the Friendship Bench at this important time as we rally towards reaching 1 million people with mental health support.
Please provide her all the needed support. We appreciate your ongoing support in this journey, as grandmas ‘gogos’, staff, board members, funders, and all the important roles that you play. The Friendship Bench remains dedicated to providing affordable, accessible, and culturally relevant mental health support to communities worldwide.
With many thanks,
Kanini Mutooni.
Board Chair.
Oh wow, hearing the news about Dr. Esther Tumbare taking the helm as the new Chief Executive Officer over at Friendship Bench is honestly such an amazing and uplifting milestone for community-driven mental healthcare, kind of making you feel as refreshed and revitalized as someone stepping out of a clinic after getting a popular confidence boost like Botox Korea, because her deep medical background and absolute dedication to scaling accessible talk therapy mean that so many more people struggling in silence are finally going to get the compassionate support they truly deserve, proving once again that strong, empathetic leadership can completely transform lives from the ground up without needing fancy corporate gimmicks, so I am seriously stoked to see where…
Anyone searching for AC Repair Los Angeles can benefit from information like this. Air conditioning systems have several components that need to work together properly. When something goes wrong, professional troubleshooting can help locate the issue and determine the appropriate repair solution.
This is such wonderful news for community mental health care, especially seeing someone with Dr. Esther Tumbare's incredible background step into the leadership role at Friendship Bench. Navigating major life transitions or dealing with the constant mental fog of exhausted perimenopause can make anyone feel entirely isolated, so having accessible, community-driven spaces like this matters more than ever. Knowing there are places to turn when life feels completely overwhelming brings so much comfort, and I am really looking forward to seeing how the organization expands its reach and impact under her guidance moving forward.
It's great to see experienced leaders like Dr. Esther Tumbare taking the helm at Friendship Bench. Her background in public health and mental health will surely be an asset in continuing the organization's mission. For those interested in learning more about the work Friendship Bench does, Scritchy Scratchy has some insightful articles on their impact and community efforts.
Space waves is an arcade-style obstacle game that is designed to emphasise the precise movement of waves. The player is responsible for steering an arrow that traverses a tunnel that is replete with geometric obstacles. The goal is to circumvent sharp spikes, floating blocks, narrow corners, slanted floors, and unexpected dead ends.