Viewpoint: WHO world mental health surveys international college student initiative: implementation issues in low‐ and middle‐income countries

The university system and students are rapidly growing and changing in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs). This growth can facilitate enhanced national productivity yet it can also bring potential risks to student mental health. The World Mental Health Surveys International College Student (WMH‐ICS) initiative could increase information and support in a relatively low‐cost manner for university students in LMICs—a group that is particularly vulnerable to mental health problems and who live in an environment where few targeted resources may be available. Effective implementation of the WMH‐ICS initiative, however, requires long‐term planning and consideration of the specific challenges present in LMIC settings. Planning as to what types of interventions would be needed and achievable in the next 10 to 15 years and consideration of local issues related to uptake, acceptability, appropriateness, feasibility, fidelity, and sustainability from the very beginning would be needed to ensure that the initiative would be useful in the future.