Thousands of empty shoes symbolising the number of men who take their own lives each year across Australia have been placed in front of Parliament House.
More than 2400 men and boys took their own lives in 2023, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and advocates are demanding action.
"Men's suicide ... It's family relationship breakdowns, loss of access to children, it's court, it's drugs, it's jail, it's crime, it's men's issues that they face," Zero Suicide Community Awareness Program campaigner Paul Withall told AAP on Tuesday.
Mr Withall is calling for more funding for men's support services to address the causes of men's suicide and a dedicated government minister for men's health.
He said current approaches weren't fit for purpose as most funding for suicide prevention went to the mental health sector.
"Men's suicide is predominantly not a diagnosable mental health issue," he said.
"The system itself is causing a lot of suicides and to stop it we need a minister for men's health and welfare to direct funding to where it needs to be at the grassroots level."
It's the third year men's shoes have been laid out on the grass in front of parliament by families who have lost a father, a son, a husband or a brother.
Many of the shoes were accompanied by photos of men who have died.
Mr Withall said despite their efforts, advocates' pleas for more support have mostly failed to garner action in parliament.
According to the ABS, 3214 people took their own lives in Australia in 2023. of those, 2419 were males and 795 were females.
Over three-quarters (75.3 per cent) of people who died by suicide were male. The median age at death for males was 45.8 years.
The event coincided with International Men's Day and is the largest visual representation of men's suicide, the organisers said.
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