WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the World Brain Forum – 16 January 2026

Former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon,

UN Special Envoy for Road Safety Jean Todt,

Director of the Paris Brain Institute, Professor Stéphanie Debette,

Distinguished colleagues, friends, and partners,

Bonjour à toutes et à tous,

It's a great honour to join you today, and I'm sorry I could not be here yesterday. But I very much wanted to come, so I thank PBI for their flexibility in accommodating me.

Let me begin by wishing PBI a very happy 15^th birthday. I extend my warmest congratulations to the Institute and to our French hosts - félicitations et merci beaucoup for your leadership and hospitality.

For 15 years, the Paris Brain Institute has been at the leading edge of brain research.

First, PBI has given the world pioneering research and groundbreaking discoveries, advancing our understanding of how the brain develops, adapts, and becomes vulnerable to disease.

Second, the Institute has built one of Europe's most advanced neuroscience ecosystems. Its world-class facilities, dedicated clinical investigation centre, and bench-to-bedside innovation pipeline stand as a model for the global research community.

This infrastructure is accelerating the development of diagnostics, therapies, and preventive tools that change lives.

And third, the Institute's new Center for Artificial Intelligence and Data Science in Neuroscience, launched just last year, puts it at the forefront of AI-enabled discovery.

In short, the Paris Brain Institute has given humanity a better understanding than ever before of the most complex and most mysterious organ in the human body.

It's the command centre of human life: the source of our thoughts, our memories, our emotions, our creativity, and our relationships.

The brain is the engine behind humanity's greatest achievements, but also its greatest failures.

It makes us who we are, as individuals, and as a species.

And yet, despite its central importance, brain health has been historically overlooked.

Globally, we face a dual challenge: a rapid rise in age-related neurological diseases, and growing mental health needs among younger generations. These trends threaten to overwhelm health systems.

Today, neurological conditions affect more than 40% of the world's population and cause over 11 million deaths each year, with the largest care gaps in low- and middle-income countries.

Nearly one billion people suffer from mental health conditions, which are often intertwined with neurological disorders.

These figures are not abstract - they represent families, communities, and futures at risk.

But we are entering a new era - scientifically, politically, and socially.

Advances in neuroscience, data science, and artificial intelligence are opening possibilities that were unimaginable only a decade ago.

And the world is beginning to recognize that brain health is not just a medical issue; it is a foundation of education, economic development, social cohesion, and sustainable development.

At the World Health Organization, we see brain health as fundamental to human potential, economic productivity, and social cohesion.

Investing in brain health strengthens societies, improves quality of life, reduces long-term care costs, and contributes to more inclusive and more resilient economies.

In 2022, we published a Position Paper on Optimizing Brain Health Across the Life Course, providing a global framework for action.

In addition, we are working to support our Member States to implement the Intersectoral Global Action Plan on Neurological Disorders, the Global Dementia Action Plan, and the Meningitis Roadmap.

Together, these instruments help countries understand, prevent, diagnose, and manage brain health conditions more effectively.

Thanks to support from France and other partners, WHO is supporting countries to integrate mental, neurological, and substance-use care into primary health care;

We're also rolling out new guidelines for meningitis, updating our guidance on dementia risk reduction, and shaping global research priorities through the WHO Brain Health Blueprint.

All of this work is helping to translate scientific progress into equitable benefits for all populations.

But there is more we can do - especially with the Paris Brain Institute.

When WHO was created in 1948, our founders decided that WHO would not establish its own research institutions, but harness the expertise and capacities of institutions around the world.

Today, we have a network of more than 800 collaborating centres globally, including 17 here in France - but PBI is not among them.

I would therefore like to invite the Paris Brain Institute to consider becoming a WHO collaborating centre, and to contributing your expertise to WHO's work around the world.

Together, our partnership can accelerate innovation, expand access, and make brain health a true pillar of public health and sustainable development.

Equity must guide everything we do.

Scientific advances matter only when everyone can benefit from them - toutes et tous.

New diagnostics and therapies must be affordable and accessible. Brain health must be integrated into primary care. Prevention strategies must reach communities everywhere - from major cities to remote rural areas.

Equity is not an optional value; it is a prerequisite for progress.

Excellencies, dear colleagues and friends,

My warmest congratulations once again for everything you have achieved in the first 15 years of your life. You have already achieved so much, but you are still only a teenager.

We all look forward to seeing what you will achieve in the next 15 years, and beyond - to the discoveries yet to come, to the young scientists whose curiosity will propel us forward, and to the patients and families whose lives will be improved.

Our shared goal must be clear: to ensure that every person, in every country, can achieve their full cognitive, emotional, and social potential.

If we succeed, we will not only reduce suffering; we will strengthen societies, accelerate innovation, and unlock the brain capital that the world urgently needs.

Together - ensemble - we can transform the future of brain health for all people, everywhere.

Merci beaucoup. I thank you.