United for Global Mental Health Statement for the United Nations Multistakeholder Hearing on NCDs, by Dr Hamdi Issa

"Excellencies and distinguished guests, my name is Dr Hamdi Issa - I am speaking on behalf of United for Global Mental Health and as a representative of the Global Mental Health Action Network that brings together 6,000 advocates from 170 countries.

As mental health advocates we recognise that the UN high level meeting on NCDs and
Mental Health presents a unique opportunity for member states to accelerate global
progress on mental health. The complex and bidirectional relationship between NCDs and Mental Health does not warrant vertical and silo interventions. That is not sustainable.
Instead, we urge member states to consider the following:

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First - It is critical governments shift health systems from the inequitable one-size-fits all
approach - towards models of people-centred care that integrate mental health and NCDs in primary care settings, making services accessible where and when people need it most. This is the fastest way to closing the mental health and NCD treatment gap!

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Second - the ambition for integrated, people-centred mental health care relies on adequate funding, and yet annually, there is a monumental 200 billion dollar finance gap for mental health. This is too big of a gap to ignore.

To sustainably narrow this gap, domestic resources need to be increased.
For high income countries this would include allocating at least 10% and for low/middle
income countries at least 5% of health budgets to mental health.
But in the parts of our world with fragile economies - domestic resources are not enough.
Therefore, external donors can and should catalytically fill these gaps. Currently, two-thirds of mental health budgets go towards institutional based care that are historically associated with human rights abuses.

To advance a rights based approach to mental health care, countries should develop a
national plan for gradually shifting the locus of care and resources from costly long-stay
institutions towards cost-effective community-based models of care.
 

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Third - protecting youth mental health.
Globally, young people are facing a generational mental health crisis. 50% of mental health conditions begin by age 18, and youth suicide rates are rising. Yet, the rapidly evolving social and economic landscapes in which we live and thrive demands more from young people than ever before.

Despite these systemic barriers, young people continue to rise as leaders. Our health
systems should be malleable to their voices and the voices of people with lived experience.

Access to age appropriate mental health services are not optional. We need to see early
interventions and early treatment - tailored to young people and readily available where they spend most of their time. 

And lastly, we are calling for a collective appreciation that ones mental health is shaped by social and commercial determinants - and we urge member states to recognise that an
absence of mental-health-in-all policies that consider the adverse social and economic
conditions individuals operate in, will be a disservice to societies most vulnerable.
 

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Thank you