NEW DELHI, September 13: The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, will serve as the coordinating Centre of Excellence for a new BRICS Network of Centres of Excellence on Mental Wellness, according to the New Delhi Declaration adopted at the 18th BRICS Summit.
The network is designed to strengthen cooperation among BRICS nations on mental-health research, policy, workforce development and integration of mental well-being into primary healthcare systems.
NIMHANS to Coordinate BRICS Mental Health Collaboration
Under the framework, NIMHANS will coordinate a network involving Centres of Excellence across BRICS member countries.
The initiative will focus on collaborative research, policy dialogue, exchange of best practices and development of evidence-based strategies for improving mental wellness.
Representatives from each BRICS member state will jointly govern the network, with the aim of ensuring balanced decision-making and shared responsibility.
Mental Health to Be Integrated Into Primary Healthcare
A major objective of the initiative is to make mental-health support a more integrated part of regular healthcare rather than treating it as a separate service.
The network is expected to help countries develop scalable systems that can expand access to mental-health services, particularly through community-based care, workforce training and task-sharing.
BRICS members have also supported a separate Training Hub Network aimed at strengthening the mental-health workforce through standardised training and knowledge exchange.
Focus on Children and Vulnerable Groups During Crises
The New Delhi Declaration also highlighted the mental-health consequences of conflicts, disasters and other crises.
BRICS countries committed to supporting timely and sustained mental-health and psychosocial interventions, with particular attention to vulnerable groups including children and adolescents.
Initiative Was First Backed by BRICS Health Ministers
The NIMHANS-led network was initially endorsed at the 16th BRICS Health Ministers’ Meeting in Chandigarh in July 2026.
The latest New Delhi Declaration has now elevated the initiative to the leaders’ level, formally reaffirming it as part of wider BRICS cooperation on public health and mental wellness.
BRICS Launches Wider Healthy Lifestyle Push
Mental health is part of a broader health agenda adopted by BRICS leaders.
The bloc also endorsed the BRICS Mission for Healthy Lifestyle and a roadmap covering 2026-2029, aimed at tackling obesity and other non-communicable diseases through preventive healthcare and public-awareness initiatives.
BRICS leaders additionally backed stronger cooperation in traditional, complementary and integrative medicine.
For India, NIMHANS being selected as the coordinating centre gives one of the country’s leading mental-health institutions a central role in shaping cross-border research, training and policy cooperation across the expanded BRICS grouping.
source – BRICS New Delhi Declaration / Ministry of Health and Family Welfare / The Indian Express
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