Mental Health Learning Journey

The World Health Organisation has recommended that people with mental health conditions and those living with psychosocial disabilities should be targeted as a vulnerable group in international development. Although mental health and psychosocial disabilities were not included in the Millennium Development Goals, they are now covered by six of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which also mention persons in vulnerable situations. The 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda calls for a global shift to translate momentum  in mental health research in low- and middle-income countries into real-world policy and programming, in order to ensure that “no one is left behind”.

This Learning Journey was led by MHIN in collaboration with K4D, for the former UK Department for International Development (DFID, now the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, or FCDO). The overall purpose of this Learning Journey was to help equip development professionals to respond to the inclusion of mental health in the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, within their own programmes and within the sector more broadly, by cultivating an active community of practice and building new networks with key partners in the UK and other countries. Resources developed through this Learning Journey are collected here, for easy access.

Also on this page, you will find additional resources related to the DFID/FCDO Position Paper and Theory of Change on mental health and psychosocial disabilities, which was launched in August 2020 after the conclusion of the Learning Journey and reflects the organisation's internal discussions on mental health as well as extensive external consultation with civil society, particularly the Bond Mental Health Sub-Group.