The WCP 2026 congress program offers a vibrant blend of symposia, courses and panel discussions, creating an engaging and immersive learning experience for all participants. The agenda highlights key themes such as global mental health, neurobiology, psychiatric education, and policy, with sessions designed to encourage collaboration and strengthen interdisciplinary dialogue.

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Join us for an enriching dialogue with esteemed experts across various fields of psychiatry, as well as related disciplines such as psychology, mental health, neuroscience and more.

Session Types & Formats

Plenary sessions bring all attendees together for high-profile presentations by leading experts who will address the Congress’s main themes. These large-format sessions offer big-picture insights and set the tone for the event, providing a unifying platform to explore key issues in psychiatry, global mental health, and future directions in care, research, and policy.

Click here to learn more about the Plenary Sessions.

Presidential Symposia are 60-minute sessions led by the WPA leadership, focusing on key themes aligned with the WPA Action Plan. These symposia highlight strategic priorities in global mental health and foster high-level dialogue on topics of international relevance, policy, and advocacy.

State-of-the-Art Symposia present expert-led reviews of the most significant recent developments in specific areas of psychiatry. Curated by WPA Scientific Sections, these sessions offer attendees authoritative updates on advances in research, clinical practice, and emerging trends within each specialty.

Collaborative Inter-Organizational Symposia are joint sessions developed by the WPA in partnership with other leading organizations. Featuring speakers from both sides, these symposia promote cross-sector dialogue and showcase shared efforts to advance mental health globally.

WPA Distinguished Lectures feature prominent speakers addressing critical issues in psychiatry and mental health. These special sessions offer thought-provoking insights on topics of global significance, delivered by widely respected leaders in the field.

WPA Distinguished Lectures feature prominent speakers addressing critical issues in psychiatry and mental health. These special sessions offer thought-provoking insights on topics of global significance, delivered by widely respected leaders in the field.

Original Sessions use innovative formats to explore key themes in psychiatry. Developed in collaboration with early career psychiatrists (ECPs), these one-hour sessions are designed to be dynamic, engaging, and highly participatory.

  • Difficult Case Discussions – In these sessions, early career psychiatrists, supported by senior experts, will present case histories of people with mental disorders whose diagnosis and management presented a number of problems. Each case will be explored in detail, highlighting key issues and inviting the audience to contribute to a collaborative discussion aimed at uncovering practical solutions and alternative approaches.
  • The WPA Three-Minute Competition – This fast-paced, interactive session features a series of brief presentations by early career psychiatrists, each with just three minutes to clearly and compellingly explain their topic. The format is designed to enhance communication skills and foster peer exchange. The audience will vote for the most engaging presentation, with the winner receiving a prize.

Panel Discussions are a key feature of the Congress, each focusing on a topic of significance selected by the Scientific Committee. These sessions are designed as open, interactive forums without formal presentations, encouraging dynamic dialogue among expert panelists and active engagement with the audience.

These scientific sessions are symposia submitted by participants and selected by the Scientific Committee for inclusion in the program. Each session features one or two co-chairs and two to three speakers, with an emphasis on international diversity—no more than two presenters may be from the same country. These symposia offer a platform for sharing original research, clinical insights, and collaborative perspectives from around the world.

Free Communication sessions feature oral presentations selected by the Scientific Committee from submitted abstracts. Presentations are grouped by Congress topics to ensure thematic coherence. Each speaker will have 10 minutes—8 minutes for the talk and 2 minutes for audience questions—offering a concise platform to share original research, clinical findings, or innovative ideas with peers from around the world.

E-posters will be available for viewing in the dedicated E-Poster Gallery throughout the duration of the Congress. This format allows attendees to explore a wide range of research and clinical work at their own pace.