As Bangladesh faces worsening climate change impacts on a warming planet, health professionals and organisations in the country are increasingly concerned about deteriorating mental health.

Violent crime is rare in the financial hub but this month two women were stabbed to death in a busy shopping mall by an attacker who police reported had a history of mental illness.

From the US to South Africa, mental health chatbots using artificial intelligence are growing in popularity as health resources are stretched, despite concerns from tech experts around data privacy and counselling ethics.

Meanwhile, the debate on the Mental Health Act 2001 continues.

It allows, among others, crisis intervention officers to apprehend any person who attempts to commit suicide.

Deputy minister Ramkarpal Singh says the bill will likely be tabled during this Parliament session.

The health minister says the issue is not getting the attention it deserves.

The Malaysian Employers Federation says the people are the country's 'core assets'.

More people across the 27 EU nations are also struggling to make ends meet and at greater risk of energy poverty, in particular due to high inflation.

Minister Khairy Jamaluddin says a new Cabinet memorandum will be prepared for the application to abolish Section 209 of the Penal Code.

Some 220 million Chinese children and young people have been confined for prolonged periods due to Covid restrictions, the Education Ministry estimated in 2020.

The rising cost of living and political 'games' have been identified as some of the main factors.