Issued on: Wednesday 3rd September 2025
Deadline: Wednesday 8th October 2025
Behavioural sciences are essential to advancing global public health, the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, as well as the implementation of WHO's General Programme of Work and its strategic objectives, with a focus on equity, impact, and accountability through stronger country support, people-centered systems, and integrated approaches to health.
The importance of behavioural sciences is further reinforced by Resolution WHA76.7, adopted at the 76th World Health Assembly in 2023. This landmark resolution calls on WHO and Member States to strengthen the systematic use of behavioural sciences in health. It highlights the need to integrate behavioural insights across health policies and programmes and invest in capacity building and participatory approaches. It also recognizes that meaningful progress in health depends not only on what services are offered, but on how effectively they are designed to meet people’s needs and lived realities.
Developing indicators and a conceptual framework to capture the use of behavioural sciences in health is therefore crucial. By monitoring indicators on the mainstreaming of behavioural sciences, the WHO Secretariat may assess progress, identify gaps, and tailor technical support to Member States for the use of behavioural sciences to improve health outcomes. This is equally important for Member States as they identify opportunities for systematic use of behavioural evidence in policy making, programme design and services delivery.
In accordance with the strategic priorities articulated in GPW 14 and the directives established by Resolution WHA76.7, the WHO Secretariat hereby invites technical inputs and comments that, through this consultative process, may inform the development and refinement of global indicators that effectively capture the use of behavioural sciences in health at national level.
WHO will collect and review the inputs. Due to an expected high volume of interest, respondents will not receive individual feedback. Summary findings of the analysis will be shared publicly by WHO in due course (no comments will be attributed to individuals or individual entities). Please monitor the Behavioural Science for Better Health webpage for any updates and additional information.
Eligible participants:
The following entities are encouraged to provide input:
- Ministry of Health and public health government entities
- Intergovernmental organizations (for example United Nation’s entities)
- Non-State actors i.e. non-governmental entities including civil-society groups, private sector entities, philanthropic foundations, and academic institutions, with experience and knowledge of the application of behavioural sciences to public health.
Draft indicators and background document
To submit feedback
To submit feedback on the draft indicators, please answer the questions via this link to the DataForm survey ( Survey for technical inputs on the draft indicators) by Wednesday 8th October 2025.
Reading the documents is expected to take up to 45 minutes and responding to the survey may take a similar amount of time.
Contact for more information or queries:
If you have any questions about this ‘Call for technical inputs’, please write to behavioural.insights@who.int
The provision of technical inputs and comments shall not create the expectation that these will be positively considered by WHO, but they may inform WHO’s work in the areas concerned. WHO may use the technical inputs developed/provided by the entity on the subject matter as deemed appropriate.
WHO reserves the right to accept or reject any aspect of the feedback, to annul the consultation process and reject all feedback at any time without incurring any liability to the respondents and without any obligation to inform the respondents of the grounds for WHO's action. WHO may also decide, at any time, not to proceed with the establishment of the indicators or modify the purpose and work of the indicators.
WHO shall not in any way be obliged to reveal, or discuss with any respondent, how feedback was assessed, or to provide any other information relating to the analysis process or to state the reasons for accepting or not accepting suggestions.
WHO does not engage with the tobacco industry or non-State actors that work to further the interests of the tobacco industry. WHO also does not engage with the arms industry.