Overview

• Suicide claimed an estimated 727,000 lives in 2021 and remains a leading cause of death among young people, with the world on track for only a 12% reduction in suicide rates by 2030 against a one‑third target.
• Median government spending on mental health is stuck at about 2% of health budgets, with stark per‑capita gaps reaching roughly US$65 in high‑income countries versus about US$0.04 in low‑income countries.
• Treatment coverage is scarce, with about 9% of people with depression receiving care globally and fewer than 10% of affected individuals treated in low‑income countries compared with over 50% in higher‑income nations.
• The global median mental health workforce stands at roughly 13 workers per 100,000 people, and fewer than 10% of countries have fully shifted to community‑based care as inpatient systems still rely heavily on psychiatric hospitals with many involuntary and long‑term admissions.
• Progress since 2020 includes wider policy updates, school and community programs, and emergency response integration in over 80% of countries, yet rights‑based legal reforms lag with only 45% of national laws meeting international human rights standards.