In May 2013, the 66th World Health Assembly — the governing body of the World Health Organization — adopted a document with a slightly bureaucratic title: the Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013–2020. It was the first global plan for mental health adopted by the world's health ministers. In 2021, member states extended and updated it through 2030. For people thinking about how schizophrenia care should be delivered worldwide, this document is the closest thing to a shared blueprint.
The WHO Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan 2013–2030 commits all WHO member states to expand community-based mental health care, promote human rights, prevent suicide, and increase the availability of essential medicines and psychosocial interventions.
The four objectives
The plan is organised around four objectives. Each has specific global targets attached:
- More effective leadership and governance for mental health. Member states should adopt or update their national mental health policies and laws in line with international human rights instruments.
- Comprehensive, integrated and responsive mental health and social care services in community-based settings. Service coverage for severe mental disorders should increase substantially, and care should be delivered as much as possible outside long-stay institutions.
- Strategies for promotion and prevention in mental health. National suicide prevention strategies should be in place and the suicide rate should fall by one-third by 2030 (a target raised from one-fifth in the 2013 version).
- Strengthened information systems, evidence and research. Routine mental health data collection should be embedded in national health information systems.
What's specifically relevant to schizophrenia
The plan does not single out schizophrenia, but several of its commitments shape how the condition is treated globally:
- An emphasis on community-based services, including outpatient clinics, primary care integration, mobile crisis teams, and supported housing — the model Trieste, Open Dialogue, and EPI services all share
- A commitment to phase out long-stay psychiatric institutions where alternatives exist
- Coverage of severe mental disorders (schizophrenia, bipolar, severe depression) is a key indicator
- Inclusion of essential antipsychotics in national essential medicines lists
- Universal Health Coverage that explicitly includes mental health
The plan also makes human rights central. It references the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and emphasises consent, capacity, freedom from coercion, and protection from abuse — all of which directly affect how schizophrenia is treated in many countries.
Where the targets stand
Global progress against the plan's targets has been mixed. In the WHO's Mental Health Atlas reports — published every few years — recurring themes are visible:
- Funding for mental health remains far below the burden of disease. Globally, governments spend on average only about 2% of their health budgets on mental health, and in low-income countries less than 1%.
- Workforce shortages are stark. Many low-income countries have fewer than one mental health worker per 100,000 people.
- Community-based care has expanded in many regions but progress is uneven and many countries still rely heavily on a small number of large psychiatric hospitals.
- National suicide prevention strategies exist in roughly 40% of countries — improving but still well short of the universal coverage target.
The pandemic also disrupted progress: WHO surveys in 2020 documented severe disruption to mental health services in most countries. The 2030 extension of the plan acknowledged this and recommitted member states to acceleration.
The mhGAP programme
One of the WHO's most influential operational tools — closely tied to the Action Plan — is the Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP). Launched in 2008 and updated regularly, mhGAP provides simple, evidence-based intervention guides for non-specialist health workers in low- and middle-income countries. The mhGAP Intervention Guide includes a module on psychosis that any trained primary care worker can use to recognise, treat, and refer.
mhGAP has been implemented in over 100 countries and is one of the practical reasons why someone with first-episode psychosis in a rural district hospital somewhere in sub-Saharan Africa or South Asia can now sometimes receive an evidence-based starting plan, even without a psychiatrist on site.
The QualityRights initiative
WHO's QualityRights initiative provides training, tools, and assessments to align mental health services with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The materials cover topics like consent, recovery-oriented care, alternatives to coercion, and supported decision-making. It is a direct operationalisation of the rights commitments in the Action Plan.
Why this matters for someone with schizophrenia
WHO documents can feel abstract from the perspective of someone managing their own medication and trying to get through a working week. But the Action Plan shapes a great deal that affects daily life:
- Whether your country's health insurance scheme covers psychiatric care
- Whether antipsychotics are on the essential medicines list and therefore subsidised
- Whether you have legal rights against involuntary treatment without due process
- Whether community-based supports exist as an alternative to long-stay hospital care
- Whether your government is collecting data that allows mental health to be measured and improved
What's next
The 2030 horizon is now within sight. The 2021 update to the plan introduced more ambitious targets, including doubling community-based service coverage for severe mental disorders. WHO has also published a 2022 World Mental Health Report — the first in over 20 years — laying out what needs to change to make the plan's vision real.
For families and people living with schizophrenia, the Action Plan is not a service you can call. But it is a benchmark you can hold your country to: are we aligned with this? Where the answer is no, advocacy organisations like NAMI in the US, Rethink in the UK, or the World Federation for Mental Health globally use the plan as a reference point in their campaigns.
This article is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified mental health professional. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 in the US, or your local emergency number.