United Arab Emirates

Abu Dhabi Ban on Junk Food in Schools

Abu Dhabi's Department of Education and Knowledge set a policy in 2025 that schools must provide healthy, nutritious food for students. Food delivery services and fizzy drinks are also banned during school hours. Schools must put in measures to actively supervise students during mealtimes to ensure their food meets these standards. Additionally, schools should share healthy eating guidelines with parents.

Sports for All

The ‘Sports for All’ policy aims to promote physical activity in Abu Dhabi. It intends to identify challenges that prevent participation in sports and design solutions for them, ensure accessibility to sports for all, and encourage less active groups to participate. All sports entities in Abu Dhabi must comply with this policy.

Masar project

The Masar project aims to raise awareness among children and their families about the advantages of healthy nutrition and increased physical activity in preventing obesity. As part of the project, a summer camp has been launched with activities and education sessions, helping them learn how to choose nutritious food and understand food labels.

National Nutrition Strategy 2030

The National Nutrition Strategy 2030 seeks to establish sustainable nutritional systems and provide safe and supportive environments for nutrition to all age groups. It has several targets including developing sustainable and flexible food systems for healthy diets and providing health systems and comprehensive coverage of basic nutrition measures. The obesity-related targets are to half the rate of obesity in children and adults.

SEHHI Healthy Menus initiative

The SEHHI Healthy Menus initiative displays the SEHHI logo on healthy menus in restaurants and food establishments. Foods with SEHHI logo are lower in fat, lower in sugar and salt content and higher in fiber than other foods of the same type. The initiative is part of the broader SEHHI programme that is led by the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre.

EMEL

The game " EMEL " serves the health and cultural aspect of children in terms of raising their awareness of healthy eating and its impact on health using an entertainment method with the aim of reducing obesity in children and adolescents. (NB. Access to specific details on programme in English are limited)

National Nutrition Guidelines

Unified national reference on food and nutrition education in the UAE’s community and health institutions

Strategy on nutrition for the Eastern Mediterranean Region 2020-2030

The WHO strategy on nutrition for the Eastern Mediterranean Region (2020-2030) sets objectives and plans to improve nutrition in the region by 2030. This includes preventing overweight, obesity, and diet-related NCDs. The strategy sets targets to reduce the prevalence of overweight in children under 5, halt the rise in diabetes and overweight in adults, halt the rise in overweight in children and adolescents, and eliminate industrially-processed trans fats from the food supply. A framework for countries to reach these goals is provided.

Mandatory standard for food in schools

The United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Education has banned nine food categories, including potato chips and chocolate, from being sold at school canteens across the Emirates.

National Strategy for Wellbeing 2031

The National Strategy for Wellbeing 2031 aims to make the UAE a world leader in quality of life. It has 14 components including promoting healthy and active lifestyles. The first National Wellbeing Observatory was developed to monitor a number of indicators of wellbeing in the UAE, submit regular reports to the Cabinet and propose training programmes.

Nutritional labeling of pre-packed products as traffic light colours

The provision of front of package information remains voluntary, but if provided it must meet the requirements.

United Arab Emirates Dietary Guideline

The Ministry of Health and Prevention developed the Guidelines based on the results of the National Health Survey 2018. Burj Khalifa is a famous major landmark so it was chosen to represent the graphic of UAE Dietary Guidelines.

Clinical Practice Recommendations for the Management of Obesity in the United Arab Emirates

Clinical Practice Recommendations for the Management of Obesity in the United Arab Emirates

DOH Service Requirements for the Weight Management Program for Overweight and Obese Children

This document sets out the service specifications, including clinical care and the scope of practice for the provision of the Department of Health’s (DOH) Weight Management Program for Overweight and Obese children.

DOH Standard for Obesity and Weight Diagnosis, Pharmacological and Surgical Management Interventions

This Standard aims to ensure the delivery of safe quality clinical care for obesity and weight management patients.

Standards for Bariatric Surgery Health Regulation Department 2018

Standards for Bariatric Surgery in Dubai.

Excise tax on tobacco products, energy drinks and sweetened and carbonated drinks

UAE Government introduced an excise tax on tobacco products, energy drinks and carbonated drinks in 2017. From the 1 December 2019, the excise tax was extended to electronic smoking devices and tools, liquids used in such devices and tools and sweetened drinks. The rate of excise tax is 50 per cent on carbonated drinks and any product with added sugar or other sweeteners. The rate is 100 per cent on everything else, including energy drinks.

National Nutrition Strategy 2017-2021

National Plan to Combat Childhood Obesity United Arab Emirates

The Plan first launched in 2017 was updated in 2022.

NCD Country Profiles 2018 (Obesity Targets)

The profiles also provide data on the key metabolic risk factors, namely raised blood pressure, raised blood glucose and obesity and National Targets on Obesity (as of 2017)

Standard relating to trans-fatty acid elimination

In 2015, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) approved TFA limits of 2% of total fat in vegetable oils and soft spreadable margarines, and 5% of total fat in other foods. United Arab Emirates have implemented the regulation in 2017.

The National Plan for Prevention and Response to Noncommunicable Diseases 2017--2021

Obesity and Morbid Obesity management

A guideline outlining management of obesity and morbid obesity in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi

Gulf Technical Regulation: Labeling of prepackaged food stuffs

Gulf Cooperation Council countries namely adopted the standards GSO (09/2013) Amd 2016 and GSO (150- 2/2013) for labeling of pre-packaged foods and shelf life. According to this GCC-wide standard, prepackaged food product labels should be in Arabic or include an Arabic language translation of the label. Producers and retailers are also mandated to provide a list of the nutrient content of pre-packaged food products, even in the absence of a nutrition or health claim.

Act Now

Campaign to fight childhood obesity by promoting lifestyle changes.

Active Life

Activelife is Daman's health and lifestyle program aimed at promoting outdoor activity, healthy living and wellness.

Guide of Health and Nutritional Practices of School Canteens (Dubai)

These guidelines have been developed to improve the nutritional standard of food served or sold in schools. The proposed requirements for food supplied in schools aim to raise standards, make critical changes to schools meals, and help improve the health and nutrition of school children in Dubai.

Lifestyle Intervention for Weight Loss (LIFE-8)

An intervention aiming for 5% weight loss and reduction in fat mass, blood pressure, waist cicumference (amongst other measures) by focusing on behaviour therapy and diet and physical activity modification.

School Canteen Guidelines of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi

The standards includes the food allowed to be sold inside the school.

Sharjah Baby Friendly (SBF) project

The Sharjah Baby-Friendly City project was established to promote and facilitate breastfeeding across the Emirate. It is based on UNICEF's Child-Friendly Cities Initiative. The project involved increasing maternity leave and introducing the accreditation of breastfeeding-friendly nurseries, workplaces and public places based on a set of criteria. UNICEF reports that the project has contributed to a significant increase in breastfeeding rates (from 18% in 2011 to 60% in 2020)

Responsible Food and Beverage Marketing to Children Pledge

The Responsible Food and Beverage Marketing to Children Pledge, initially adopted in the GCC in 2010, is a voluntary commitment by the signatory companies to conduct responsible food and beverage marketing to children. The pledge informs and benchmarks how food and beverage products are marketed in a responsible way to children under the age of 12 in the region. In 2016 the pledge was enhanced by applying a set of nutrition criteria to define ‘better for you options’ . The pledge was endorsed by the Advertising Business Group in 2018.

Fat Truth Campaign 2009

Aimed to increase awareness of childhood obesity and promote healthy lifestyles primarily focusing on schools

Child's Rights Law - Breastfeeding

A clause in the Child Rights Law passed in 2014 requires mothers to breastfeed until their child is two years old.

GNPR 2016-17 (q7) Breastfeeding promotion and/or counselling

WHO Global Nutrition Policy Review 2016-2017 reported the evidence of breastfeeding promotion and/or counselling (q7)