KUWAIT: Recognizing that nearly 65 percent of a person’s health outcomes are shaped by lifestyle, behavior, and the conditions in which they live, Kuwait’s Ministry of Health adopted the Healthy Cities program, in 2014, in line with the World Health Organization’s global Healthy Cities framework. Rather than waiting for individuals to develop illnesses before intervening, the initiative focuses on prevention by addressing environmental and societal factors that influence well-being from birth through old age.
Key national health goals supported by the Healthy Cities Program include controlling diabetes, lowering cancer mortality rates, and increasing the life expectancy of citizens. The program also aims to enable people to live with dignity, maintain their independence and productivity, and achieve active aging through community-led, practical interventions. These include developing walkways, gardens, and green spaces that encourage physical activity, reduce stress and improve air quality.
The initiative also works closely with local cooperatives to adjust food pricing and product placement, making healthier options more accessible while reducing the visibility of less nutritious choices. Dr Amaal Hussain, who headed the Healthy Cities Office at the Ministry of Health for a decade before recently retiring, said the initiative’s goals cannot be achieved through government services alone, but rather requiring strong collaboration between government institutions and local communities. “Empowering communities to have a voice in improving the conditions they live in may allow their ideas to move ahead of bureaucratic processes,” she said.
Dr. Amaal Hussain
Rising chronic diseases
Despite Kuwait’s strong healthcare system, lifestyle-related diseases remain widespread. One in five people lives with diabetes, one in four has high blood pressure, and obesity rates are among the highest globally. Smoking rates in Kuwait remain a serious public health concern. About 36 percent of adult men are smokers, while around 26 percent of boys aged 13 to 15 report smoking.
Among females, smoking rates are lower but rising. An estimated 8 to 11 percent of adolescent girls smoke, compared to about 2 to 3 percent of adult women. While the initiative cannot fully control daily habits or eliminate all health risks, its aim is to reshape environments so that healthier decisions become easier and more accessible. Currently, 21 areas in Kuwait are registered under the Healthy Cities program. Ten have received full accreditation, while the remaining areas are still undergoing evaluation. The program has already recorded measurable results in several areas. In Al-Yarmouk, Kuwait’s first area to receive Healthy City accreditation, collaboration between the initiative and local primary schools contributed to a 0.5 percent reduction in childhood obesity.
Measurable progress on the ground
According to data from the area’s primary healthcare center, improvements were also observed in long-term blood sugar control among residents. Community measures such as traffic reduction, safer routes for students, and expanded green spaces helped reduce cases of uncontrolled asthma. Visits to primary healthcare centers for uncontrolled bronchial asthma fell from the fifth to the eighth most common reason for consultation.
School gardens and public parks in Al-Yarmouk were restored, creating safe green spaces for children and families. In Adailiya, Towers Park was rehabilitated and beautified, and the area’s central roundabout was redesigned in partnership with the College of Architecture to reduce heavy traffic. In Abdullah Al-Salem, a waste collection center was designed in collaboration with Kuwait University’s College of Architecture, allocating part of a local park for residents to sort and dispose of waste.
While the project has been approved, full implementation is still pending. In Dasma, a long-abandoned school building was transformed into a Healthy City center following years of coordination between the Ministry of Education, the Healthy Cities program, and the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters. The site now serves as a community hub in an area with limited recreational facilities. In Al-Oyoun, areas prone to flooding and safety risks are monitored through regular patrols coordinated with local police, helping prevent accidents and improve public safety. The initiative has also expanded beyond residential neighborhoods to include healthy universities and healthy malls.
Expanding into a national framework
Kuwait University, which serves more than 42,000 students in addition to faculty and staff, has adopted Healthy Cities standards across its campus. A newly introduced electronic health record system requires students to complete medical screenings before receiving their university identification. Additional measures include smoking cessation programs, an on-campus ambulance service, and the integration of Healthy Cities guidelines into dormitories and campus facilities. Research projects examining student attitudes, dietary habits, and physical activity patterns are used to inform targeted health interventions.
The program has also partnered with management teams at shopping malls and commercial complexes to promote health-conscious design, ensuring that public spaces, food outlets, and recreational areas align with Healthy Cities standards. Dr Hussain said the long-term vision is to expand the initiative into a nationwide framework. Given Kuwait’s size, implementation began at the neighborhood level before extending to the capital and other areas. “As the initiative grows, so does the scale of its impact,” she said, reflecting a broader commitment to building healthier, more resilient communities across the country.
