Global Mental Health Crisis: Over 1 Billion Affected, WHO Calls for Action
*Feature image: From the 1999 film “Girl, Interrupted,” directed by James Mangold and written by James Kahn. Starring Winona Ryder (left) and Angelina Jolie (right) as two women admitted to a mental hospital in the 1960s.
World Health Organization Reports Emphasize Need for Urgent Scale-Up of Mental Health Services
According to recent data from the World Health Organization (WHO), more than one billion people worldwide are currently living with mental health disorders. Conditions such as anxiety and depression not only take a severe human toll but also impose significant economic burdens globally. While some countries are making progress by strengthening mental health policies and programs, the WHO highlights that much greater investment and urgent action are required to expand mental health services and promote well-being for all.
Mental health disorders—including anxiety and depression—are highly prevalent across countries, communities, and demographics, affecting people of all ages and income levels. They are now the second leading cause of long-term disability and contribute substantially to the loss of healthy life-years. The economic impact is profound, with affected individuals and families facing increased health-care costs, while economies lose productivity on a massive scale.
The latest findings, published in two key reports—World Mental Health Today and Mental Health Atlas 2024—show areas of progress but also reveal critical gaps in how nations address mental health worldwide. The insights and recommendations from these reports helped shape strategies and inform global discussions during the United Nations High-Level Meeting on noncommunicable diseases and mental health, held on September 25, 2025, in New York. At the meeting, world leaders and health experts emphasized the urgent need to scale up investment in mental health services, prioritize mental health in national agendas, and strengthen cross-sector collaboration. Key outcomes included renewed commitments to increase funding for mental health, enhance community-based care, and accelerate legal reforms to uphold human rights standards. The meeting underscored the importance of treating mental health care as a fundamental right and called for continued international cooperation to address the global mental health crisis.
“Transforming mental health services is one of the most pressing public health challenges,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “Investing in mental health means investing in people, communities, and economies—an investment no country can afford to neglect. Every government and every leader has a responsibility to act with urgency and to ensure that mental health care is treated not as a privilege, but as a basic right for all.”
Key Insights from World Mental Health Today
The report finds that while the prevalence of mental health disorders varies by gender, women are more likely to be affected overall. Anxiety and depression remain the most common mental health issues among both men and women.
Suicide is a devastating consequence of mental illness, claiming approximately 727,000 lives in 2021 alone. It stands as a leading cause of death among young people, regardless of country or socioeconomic status. Despite ongoing efforts, the reduction in suicide rates is not on track to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of a one-third decrease by 2030—only a 12% reduction is projected at the current pace.
The economic cost of mental health disorders is staggering. Beyond direct health-care expenses, lost productivity is a major factor, with depression and anxiety alone costing the world economy an estimated $1 trillion each year.
These findings highlight the urgent need for sustained investments, greater prioritization, and cross-sector collaboration to improve access to mental health care, combat stigma, and address the root causes of mental health conditions.
Main Findings from the 2024 Mental Health Atlas
Since 2020, many countries have made significant progress in updating mental health policies, adopting rights-based approaches, and improving preparedness for mental health and psychosocial support during health emergencies. However, legal reforms have lagged. Fewer countries have enacted or enforced mental health laws that fully comply with international human rights standards—only 45% have done so.
The report also notes stagnation in funding: median government spending on mental health remains at just 2% of total health budgets, unchanged since 2017. Disparities are stark—high-income countries spend up to $65 per person on mental health, while low-income countries may spend as little as $0.04. Globally, there are only 13 mental health workers per 100,000 people, with severe shortages in low- and middle-income countries.
Reform of mental health services is slow. Fewer than 10% of countries have fully shifted to community-based care models, with most still early in transition. Inpatient care is still largely hospital-based, with nearly half of psychiatric hospital admissions involuntary and over 20% lasting more than a year.
Integration of mental health into primary health care is improving, with 71% of countries meeting at least three out of five WHO integration criteria. However, data gaps persist, and in low-income countries, less than 10% of affected individuals receive care compared to over 50% in higher-income nations—highlighting the urgent need to expand access and enhance service delivery.
On a positive note, most countries now have functional mental health promotion initiatives, including early childhood development, school-based mental health programs, and suicide prevention. Over 80% of countries incorporate mental health and psychosocial support into emergency responses, a significant increase from 39% in 2020. Outpatient and telehealth mental health services are growing, though access remains uneven.
WHO Calls for Global Scale-Up of Mental Health Action
Despite some positive developments, the WHO warns that countries are still far from achieving targets outlined in the Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan. The organization calls on governments and global partners to intensify efforts for systemic transformation of mental health systems, including:
- -Ensuring equitable financing for mental health services
- -Enacting legal and policy reforms to uphold human rights
- -Investing in and expanding the mental health workforce
- -Scaling up community-based, person-centered care
About the Reports
The World Mental Health Today publication offers a timely update to the data chapter from the 2022 World Mental Health Report: Transforming Mental Health for All, presenting the latest global data on the prevalence, burden, and economic cost of mental health conditions.
The Mental Health Atlas 2024 survey assesses mental health services and systems worldwide, with the latest edition compiling data from 144 countries. It provides the most comprehensive overview of global responses to mental health challenges, including policy implementation, financing, human resources, service availability, and data collection. New sections cover tele-mental health and preparedness for mental health and psychosocial support in emergencies, addressing evolving mental health needs and data gaps.
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