World Mental Health Day 2021

Mental health is an integral part of health and well-being. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on people’s mental health over the past 18 months and mental health support services have been significantly disrupted. Mental health conditions are increasing worldwide and remain one of the most neglected areas of public health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental health conditions:

• affect 20% of the world's children and adolescents, with suicide being the second leading cause of death in 15-29 year olds
• affects 1 in 5 people in post-conflict settings

During the World Health Assembly in May 2021, governments from around the world recognised the need to scale up quality mental health services at all levels and endorsed WHO’s Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013-2030, which sets out clear actions for WHO and it's Member States to:

• promote mental health and well-being for all
• prevent mental health conditions for those at-risk
• achieve universal coverage for mental health services

World Mental Health day is held on 10 October each year. This year, the World Mental Health Day campaign slogan is 'Mental health care for all: let’s make it a reality' which aims to:

• showcase the efforts of some countries to provide mental health care to their populations
• encourage people to highlight positive mental health stories as an inspiration to others
• provide new materials, in easy-to-read formats, on how to take care of your own mental health and how to provide support to others

For further information on this year's campaign and to access the campaign materials, visit the WHO website

For information on travel health advice relating to mental health, see the TRAVAX Mental Health and Travel page.