This Forum was timely, coming soon after the launch of our report titled “Fostering Enabling Environments to Deliver Integrated, People-Centred Care for Mental Health Conditions and Non-Communicable Diseases”. The report shaped many of our discussions during which we reinforced the importance of breaking down silos between mental health and NCDs to achieve equitable and sustainable health outcomes. These insights will continue to inform our advocacy efforts leading up to the 2025 UN HLM on NCDs and Mental Health.
Did you miss any or all of the three sessions we held at the Forum? Did you attend any or all our sessions and would like a summary of the discussions? We are happy to indulge you so that you can add your voice to our advocacy efforts!
Our first session, co-organised with the World Obesity Federation, focused on increasing awareness of the fact that integrating mental health into NCD financing is cost-effective and will contribute towards bridging the mental health and NCD financing gap. This vibrant, full-capacity session unpacked key takeaways from the Second International Dialogue on Sustainable Financing for NCDs and Mental Health in 2024, and outlined action points for civil society.
“We need to build the argument for innovative financing for the health workforce. So much of a good mental health system is delivered by skilled people; so we need to find ways to motivate the private sector to invest in people as well as medicines.”
James Sale – Deputy CEO, UnitedGMH.
There was also a call for governments to address social and commercial determinants of mental health including, workplace policies and corporate culture; economic inequality and poverty; and social media influence, including online harassment and algorithm-driven anxiety.
“If we don’t address the social and commercial determinants of mental health, we can’t address mental health care comprehensively. We must work collaboratively with governments to prioritise mental health in their approaches.”
Kevin Pierre Cooke, Healthy Caribbean Coalition.
Watch James Sales share key insights in this video.
Organised jointly with UNICEF and NCDA Kenya, our second session focused on harnessing the mental health and NCD community to strengthen advocacy and impact. The key recommendations that emerged were to integrate mental health into existing health programmes to deliver more cost-effective outcomes. And the need for stronger primary health care systems to ensure availability of and access to rights-based mental healthcare when and where people need it most.
“A skilled and healthy workforce is critical to promoting the highest attainable physical and mental health standards. However, in many low- and middle-income countries, the demand for NCD and mental health care exceeds the supply of NCD and mental health professionals. Governments need to offer mental health pre-service training for the PHC workforce.”
Dr. Hamdi Issa – Senior Policy Officer, UnitedGMH
For our third and final session, we joined a PATH-led panel on reducing out-of-pocket (OOP) health expenditure for people living with NCDs and mental health conditions. We called upon governments to ensure mental health medicines are included in national essential medicines lists and made available at primary health care levels, not just in tertiary facilities.
Watch Dr. Hamdi’s video to learn more about the key insights from the sessions.
Other Forum discussions important to mental health
The HLM was the central theme of the Forum and mental health was frequently woven into conversations, highlighting its growing prominence in global priorities. It was clear that the NCD community is fully on board with mental health having a strong presence at the HLM recognising that progress in mental health must go hand in hand with broader NCD advancements to drive meaningful change. During the Forum, we disseminated the GMHAN briefing for the UN HLM, which outlines four key priorities for advancing mental health: service reform, suicide prevention, child and youth mental health, and commercial and social determinants of mental health. Additionally, we explored opportunities to sustain advocacy efforts for these priorities including.
- The launch of the Kigali Youth Declaration which calls for bold leadership that prioritises action on NCDs and mental health and calls for increasing investment in youth-friendly healthcare systems that meet both physical and mental health needs. Youth leaders at the conference called upon leaders to support integrated approaches that promote adolescent mental health.
- The training of Community Health Extension Workers (CHEWs) as a way to strengthen primary health care. The permanent secretary of the Ministry of Health Uganda, Dr. Diana Atwine shared a case study showcasing how CHEWs are leading the way in NCD awareness raising and screening, resulting in early detection and strengthened referral pathways. This model was re-echoed by several countries including Nigeria, Malawi and Kenya where CHEWs support service delivery at the primary health care level. Integrating mental health support in the CHEWs care package would improve health coverage, patient satisfaction, access to services, and quality of care.
- Advocacy for suicide decriminalisation -suicide and suicide attempts are still criminal offences in civil law in more than 20 countries worldwide despite the fact that the punishment of suicidal behaviour deters people from seeking the help they need and increasing the risk of suicide. We need governments to develop prevention strategies that address and suicide and promote mental health. One of the most profound moments of the forum was a moving tribute to Charity Muturi, a remarkable NCD and mental health advocate we lost last year.
“Charity was an inspirational force in the Kenya NCD Alliance and in East Africa. She was an active campaigner for suicide decriminalisation in Kenya and just last month, attempted suicide was decriminalised by the High Court in Kenya.”
Dr Joseph Kibachio Medical Advisor for NCDs and Mental Health, World Health Organisation.
Looking ahead
Insights from the Global NCDA Forum will be instrumental in shaping our advocacy efforts leading up to the 2025 UN HLM on NCDs and mental health, and inspire collective action to build stronger, more inclusive health systems that leave no one behind. The momentum generated in Kigali must translate into concrete policy changes that prioritise integrated care, with mental health fully recognised as a key component of the NCD response.
This blog was originally posted on the United for Global Mental Health website.
