As part of Pakistan’s official health engagement mission to the United States, Minister of State for National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, Dr Malik Mukhtar Ahmad Bharath, held a strategic meeting with Professor Geoffrey M Reed, Director of the Columbia-World Health Organization (WHO) Center for Global Mental Health and Professor of Medical Psychology at the Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, to advance collaboration on population mental health measurement, evidence-informed policymaking, and the strengthening of mental health systems in Pakistan.
The Pakistani delegation included Dr Syed Usman Hamdani, Founding Director of the Global Institute of Human Development (GIHD) at Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University, and Dr Malik Muhammad Safi, Technical Advisor to the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination, according to a statement today.
The meeting focused on the development of a national mental health data dashboard for Pakistan, informed by the WHO Flexible Interview for ICD-11 (FLII-11), and its integration into Pakistan’s evolving health information architecture.
Participants emphasised that population-representative mental health data are essential for guiding national policy, monitoring inequalities, strengthening service planning, supporting implementation, and accelerating progress towards Universal Health Coverage for Mental Health.
The discussion reviewed the development and key features of FLII-11, a fully structured diagnostic interview designed for epidemiological, population-based, and clinical assessments of mental disorders aligned with ICD-11 diagnostic concepts.
Participants discussed the relevance of FLII-11 to Pakistan, noting that it would help generate nationally representative mental health estimates, strengthen psychiatric epidemiology and surveillance, support ICD-11 implementation, assess unmet mental healthcare needs, improve monitoring of service utilisation and outcomes, and inform policy and investment decisions.
A major area of discussion centred on the Climate Impact Module within FLII-11 and its strategic relevance to Pakistan’s climate and mental health agenda. Participants noted that population-level mental health data could help Pakistan better understand the impact of climate-related exposures on well-being, identify vulnerable populations, and generate evidence to inform policy and practice.
The discussion also highlighted opportunities to strengthen the integration of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) into climate adaptation, emergency preparedness, and humanitarian response systems for climate-affected populations in Pakistan.
The meeting further highlighted ongoing collaboration led by Dr Syed Usman Hamdani at the Global Institute of Human Development to support the translation, cultural adaptation, and validation of FLII-11 for use in Pakistan and to explore pathways for its integration into national mental health surveillance systems.
Participants agreed to advance the development of a national mental health data dashboard informed by FLII-11 to support evidence-informed policymaking, strengthen population mental health monitoring, and establish an open, scalable platform capable of contributing to future global psychiatric epidemiology and mental health systems strengthening.
Dr Bharath reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to evidence-informed policymaking and stressed that robust data systems would be essential for implementing Pakistan’s forthcoming National Mental Health Policy, establishing the National Hub of Excellence for Mental Health, and advancing climate-resilient mental health systems.
Acknowledging Professor Reed’s distinguished contributions to global mental health and his leadership in promoting evidence-based approaches to mental health policy and measurement, the minister formally invited him to participate in World Mental Health Day 2026, scheduled to be held in Islamabad on October 1-2, 2026, under the theme: ‘Building Climate-Resilient and Future-Ready Mental Health Systems for Children and Young People.’
Professor Reed accepted the invitation and expressed interest in continued engagement with Pakistan’s emerging agenda on population mental health measurement, policy innovation, and global collaboration.
The meeting concluded with an agreement to continue technical discussions and develop a roadmap for the adaptation, validation, implementation, and policy translation of FLII-11 and population mental health data systems in Pakistan, with the goal of creating scalable approaches that support both national priorities and global learning.