Abu Dhabi expands Healthy Living push as abu dhabi rolls out 25 initiatives
abu dhabi’s government-led Healthy Living programme has begun implementing 25 strategic initiatives under the Abu Dhabi Healthy Living Strategy, while related public-health material in the context indicates a move to ban junk food advertising and change billboard content. The combined measures aim to make healthier choices easier and respond to the rising burden of non-communicable diseases.
Abu Dhabi Healthy Living strategy
Healthy Living presented a comprehensive set of strategic initiatives aligned with the Abu Dhabi Healthy Living Strategy, framed as a critical step to address non-communicable diseases such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease and cancer. The strategy was endorsed during an Executive Council session by His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council. Leadership framed the approach as treating wellbeing as core infrastructure and reshaping environments that influence daily behaviour.
Implementation of 25 strategic initiatives in abu dhabi
The programme is currently overseeing 25 initiatives spanning five key domains: enhanced infrastructure, programmes, evidence-based policies and regulations, literacy and awareness, and improved access to healthcare interventions. Healthy Living is orchestrating the efforts while implementation is carried out by government entities, private-sector partners, communities and individuals. Named participating government entities in the provided material include the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority and the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre; an implementation list in the context is incomplete in the available text.
Focus areas and rollout timing
In its initial phase, Healthy Living focuses on increasing physical activity, improving nutrition, and strengthening awareness and knowledge. Initiatives that address other health pillars, including sleep and mental wellbeing, are stated to be scheduled for rollout later in the year. Officials framed the push as a shift from reactive care to a proactive, preventative approach focused on early intervention both inside and outside the health system.
Junk food advertising and billboards changes
Separate contextual material indicates a public-health policy that bans junk food advertising and aims to remove large burger hoardings, with billboards described as moving to a sugar-free stance as part of an obesity-targeted policy. That material positions advertising restrictions and changes in public messaging as complementary measures intended to reduce population exposure to unhealthy food marketing.
Analysis and near-term outlook
The combined emphasis on environmental change, policy levers and community-facing programmes reflects an integrated prevention orientation. Officials quoted in the context framed Healthy Living as data-driven and grounded in community insights, and the approach highlights coordination across sectors as essential. Planned later rollouts for sleep and mental wellbeing create a clear sequencing: early-stage efforts target activity, nutrition and awareness, with broader wellbeing pillars to follow.
Key immediate indicators to watch in the coming months will be the pace of initiative implementation across the five domains and the operational steps taken to restrict junk-food advertising and billboard content. If the initial initiatives are delivered at scale and the advertising measures are enacted as outlined, the programme’s architects present a conditional path toward reducing behavioural drivers of non-communicable diseases; outcomes and impact remain to be measured as the initiatives proceed.
