Project Atlas
To provide information about the current status of mental health systems and to highlight the great variations among countries, WHO collected basic information from 181 countries for a “Project Atlas of Mental Health Resources.” This important survey revealed that roughly four out of ten countries have no defined mental health policy; approximately one-third have no drug and alcohol policy; one-third have no specific budget for mental health and half of the remainder allocate under 1% of their public health budget to mental health. One-third of the countries reporting had no mental health program at all. WHO finds the lack of policy related to children and adolescents particularly significant.
- Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, WHO Director-General, speech at the Council for Mental Health Seminar, Oslo, Norway, 11 December 2001. See www.who.int/director-general/speeches/index.html
- World Health Report 2001, Mental Health: New Understanding, New Hope. Geneva, WHO 2001. To order, email [email protected]
- World Development Report 1993: Investing in Health. New York, Oxford University Press for the World Bank, 1993.
Fourth Quarter 2001 Newsletter