In a groundbreaking address, Prime Minister Gaston Browne of Antigua and Barbuda has called for a transformative global vision to prioritize mental health as a cornerstone of sustainable development. Highlighting mental illness as the ‘great invisible crisis of our time,’ Browne emphasized its pervasive impact on families, communities, and nations, often overshadowed by stigma and neglect. He argued that mental health is not merely a personal struggle but a universal challenge intertwined with human rights, social justice, and economic stability. Browne outlined three critical imperatives: normalizing mental wellness, ensuring universal access to care, and fostering global solidarity. He urged the international community to treat mental health with the same urgency and investment as physical health, leveraging innovation and collaboration to dismantle barriers to care. Antigua and Barbuda pledged to lead by example, sharing its experiences and advocating for mental health integration into global development policies. The Prime Minister concluded with a powerful call to action, declaring that true human progress is impossible without mental wellness, and urging the world to make this decade a turning point in the fight for mental health equity.
PM Gaston Browne Calls for Global Action to Put Mental Health at the Heart of Development
