European Mental Health Week launches on 4 May with plea to policymakers to prioritise mental healthcare

“Stronger Together: Prioritise Mental Health in a Changing Europe” is the message from Brussels-based NGO Mental Health Europe as it launches the sixth edition of its European Mental Health Week, from 4 to 8 May.

Some 46 events are staged in more than 20 locations in Belgium and around the continent for the sixth edition of the initiative.

In addition to a high level policy discussion in the European Parliament, Brussels hosts the comedy night Laughing Together in a local brewery on 6 May. Canadian comedian Tristan Barber joins four other talents: Jenni Gee (US), Abhi (Ind), Sam Kiebooms (Bel) and Iris Costrop (Bel), to reflect on their mental health journeys. The evening is raising money for the Brussels nonprofit Diogenes, which helps the homeless living on the streets of the capital.

From community initiatives to Europe-wide policy discussions, the action is marked by people coming together to share their experience and best practices to shape the future of mental health.

The activities, including online events, are focused on five key pillars in mental health, which range from securing integrated mental healthcare in EU governance and shifting policy from treatment to prevention to accelerating community-based care.

Mental health at a crossroads in Europe

The 2026 edition comes at a crucial time as the European Commission’s 2023 Comprehensive Approach to Mental Health is nearing the end of its cycle.

A new policy brief by MHE, published on the eve of the action week, warns that without governance, funding and accountability, three years of EU progress on mental health risks ending as a political footnote.

“Stronger Together: A Path Towards an EU Mental Health Strategy for All” sets out what the next decade of EU action on mental health should deliver and how.

It notes that the 2023 Approach was a first in recognising mental health as a shared EU responsibility across health, employment, education, digital policy and social inclusion, backed by 20 flagship initiatives and €1.23 billion.

But three years on, says MHE, these initiatives are winding down and the crisis persists. Mental health conditions cost the EU over €600 billion annually, while suicide remains the leading cause of death among 15–19-year-olds.

It identifies three key structural gaps: voluntary participation, project-based responses to systemic challenges and a lack of continuity beyond 2026. “What began as a political signal risks ending as a political footnote,” warns the NGO.

MHE calls for a new EU Mental Health Strategy (2027–2037) to be built on five priorities: embedding mental health in EU governance, shifting from treatment to prevention, accelerating community-based care, integrating mental health across all policies, and sustainably funding civil society and lived experience.

“The evidence is clear, the tools exist, and the political groundwork has been laid. What the next decade requires is the will to build, deliberately and collectively,” the brief concludes.