28 May 2025
On Friday, 2 May 2025, World Obesity Federation volunteers and staff participated in the Interactive Multistakeholder Hearing at United Nations Headquarters in New York calling for action on obesity to be at the heart of the global noncommunicable Diseases (NCD) response.This hearing provided a crucial opportunity for World Obesity and its community to elevate the urgency of systemic action on obe...
28 May 2025
28 May 2025
On World No Tobacco Day (31 May, 2025) the Forum of International Respiratory Societies (FIRS), supports the World Health Organization’s (WHO) efforts to expose and condemn the tobacco industry’s harmful tactics—many of which are aimed at young people.This year’s World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) – themed ‘Unmasking the appeal: Exposing industry tactics on tobacco and nicotine products�...
28 May 2025
28 May 2025
High-level Official Side Event Convened by Barbados, Norway, Spain, the NCD Alliance and United for Global Mental HealthMember States, civil society and public health experts convened on the sidelines of the 78th World Health Assembly to issue a call for action and to chart the path forward on noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and mental health. NCDs, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and c...
28 May 2025
27 May 2025
At the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly (WHA78), Member States acknowledged the independent mid-term evaluation of the WHO Global Coordination Mechanism on the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (GCM/NCD) under agenda item 12. The mid-term evaluation was discussed alongside follow-up to the political declaration of the third High-Level Meeting of the United Nations General...
27 May 2025
27 May 2025
Traditionally, the global health sector has been dominated by large civil society organisations (CSOs) based in high-income countries speaking on behalf of everyone else. Mental health has too often been left behind.UnitedGMH has always sought to do things differently: we want CSOs from Low-Middle Income Countries and particularly People with Lived Experience to be heard directly.As secretariat fo...
27 May 2025
27 May 2025
About this SeriesThis article is part of the Lived Experience Perspectives Series, which features firsthand accounts from individuals living with noncommunicable diseases, mental health, or neurological conditions. Each piece highlights one of the key advocacy messages from the WHO Symposium on the Meaningful Engagement of People Living with NCDs, Mental Health, and Neurological Conditions, contri...
27 May 2025
25 May 2025
by Sarah Kline. What a week! The World Health Assembly (WHA) gathers health ministers and the health community from around the world. Mental health is firmly on the global and national agenda, and we have left Geneva feeling optimistic and energised. Mental health had the highest profile at a WHA that we’ve ever seen, and for all the right reasons:Numerous governments committed to actO...
25 May 2025
23 May 2025
On May 19th, the World Diabetes Foundation co-organized a flagship event with the International Diabetes Federation titled "Digital Health Transformation in the Global NCD Response – A Call for Unified Approaches and Scaled Investment." Digital health solutions offer valuable opportunities to enhance patient care and make quality healthcare more accessible, particularly fo...
23 May 2025
16 May 2025
Mental health is a public health priority and a fundamental human right. Yet, many systems remain reliant on biomedical models and institutional care, overlooking social and structural determinants and international human rights standards. People with mental health conditions and psychosocial disabilities often face discrimination, stigma, and coercion in care settings.The COVID-19 pandemic i...
16 May 2025
15 May 2025
"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 andMental Health presents a unique opportunity for member states to acce...
15 May 2025
09 May 2025
GMHAN at the Multistakeholder Hearing on noncommunicable diseases (NCD) and mental health and wellbeing2025 is a historic year for mental health advocacy. For many years to come, we will look back on it and reflect on the political declaration made by United Nations (UN) Member States this coming September at the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting (HLM) - the first ever HLM at the United Natio...
09 May 2025
08 May 2025
In late April, NCD advocates from around the world gathered in New York to recharge their efforts and meet with their countries’ representatives ahead of the fourth UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs and Mental Health (HLM4). At HLM4, countries will renew their commitments to stopping the world’s biggest killer, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), from claiming 43 million lives every year. The Multi-S...
08 May 2025
