The United Nations General Assembly has formally adopted the Political Declaration of the High-Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases and Mental Health on 15 December 2025. The Global Alcohol Policy Alliance (GAPA), welcomes this development and calls for urgent action in response. The Declaration makes only limited reference to alcohol, but it does point to increasing taxes on tobacco and alcohol and encourages use of the key international instruments for alcohol control.

“Alcohol consumption is a leading cause of death and disability, with a rising burden in some Western Pacific countries, disproportionally affecting young people.” This starting point is outlined when the World Health Organisation (WHO), Western Pacific Region (WPR) is discussing alcohol control at its Regional Committee Meeting 20-25 October 2025. The Asia Pacific Alcohol Policy Alliance and the South-East Asia Alcohol Policy Alliance have issued a joint statement.

GAPA has provided feedback on the first draft of the WHO Global Plan of Action for the Health of Indigenous Peoples. This feedback has been based on the GAPA Interim policy statement in support of Indigenous-led aspirations for effective alcohol policy.

GAPA is gravely concerned by the content of the current draft Political Declaration of the Fourth UN High Level Meeting on Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health. This post include comments and suggestions from the Global Alcohol Policy Alliance (GAPA) to the 3rd, and earlier, drafts of the outcome document.

Working together with the World Federation of Public Health Associations (WFPHA) Indigenous Working Group, GAPA has contributed to the first ever International Indigenous policy position on alcohol harm. The policy document was launched at a side event to the 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva on 24th May.

For the upcoming United Nations High Level Meeting on Non-Communicable Diseases (UNHLM NCDs) in September 2025 GAPA wants to bring these particular issues to the attention of Member States.

Indigenous peoples worldwide experience significant and intergenerational alcohol-related harm and inequity. GAPA’s interim policy statement in support of Indigenous-led aspirations for effective alcohol policy is the outcome of the space provided at GAPC 2023 for Indigenous peoples to connect, discuss shared and unique issues, and identify a way forward.

In the IAEG-SDGs 2025 Comprehensive Review of the SDG indicators, GAPA made a submission in response to the proposal by the International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD) to amend indicator 3.5.2 (alcohol per capita consumption (APC)) with prevalence of heavy episodic drinking (HED) and alcohol-related morbidity and mortality.

In May 2024 the World Health Organisation conducted an online hearing to inform the recommendations to be included in the report of the WHO Director-General to the World Health Assembly (WHA) 2025 in preparation for the fourth High-level Meeting of the General Assembly on the Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases to be held in September 2025. In the consultation GAPA made the following submission.

In 2021 the Global Alcohol Policy Alliance (GAPA) wrote a letter to the CEO of the newly formed WHO Foundation, formed to enhance funding of the World Health Organization. GAPA expressed concerns about the WHO Foundation's gift acceptance policy.