Overview

• The WHO unveiled its World Mental Health Today and Mental Health Atlas 2024 on Sept. 2, reporting about 727,000 suicide deaths in 2021 and more than 1 billion people living with mental disorders, with suicide the third leading cause of death for ages 15–29.
• On current trajectories, the organization projects only about a 12% decline in suicide deaths over five years, far off the UN goal to cut suicides by one‑third by 2030.
• Mental health receives roughly 2% of national health budgets on average, with per‑person spending around $65 in high‑income countries compared with $0.04 in low‑income countries.
• Care access is deeply unequal, reaching fewer than 10% of people with mental conditions in the poorest countries versus more than 50% in high‑income settings, even though nearly three quarters of suicides occur in low‑ and middle‑income nations.
• The WHO notes some gains, including mental health and psychosocial support in emergency responses rising from 39% of countries in 2020 to 80% now, as it urges governments to scale proven, low‑cost interventions ahead of the UN high‑level meeting on Sept. 25.