Regular physical activity is proven to help prevent and treat noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as heart disease stroke diabetes and breast and colon cancer. It also helps to prevent hypertension overweight and obesity and can improve mental health quality of life and well-being. In addition to the multiple health benefits of physical activity societies that are more active can generate additional returns on investment including a reduced use of fossil fuels cleaner air and less congested safer roads. These outcomes are interconnected with achieving the shared goals political priorities and ambition of the Sustainable Development Agenda 2030. The new WHO global action plan to promote physical activity responds to the requests by countries for updated guidance and a framework of effective and feasible policy actions to increase physical activity at all levels. It also responds to requests for global leadership and stronger regional and national coordination and the need for a whole-of-society response to achieve a paradigm shift in both supporting and valuing all people being regularly active according to ability and across the life course. The action plan was developed through a worldwide consultation process involving governments and key stakeholders across multiple sectors including health sports transport urban design civil society academia and the private sector.

This book critically evaluates the complex relations between physical activity, health imperatives and cultural and social opportunities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The book explores the uncertainty of knowledge around physical activity behavior and its distinctive meanings in LMIC contexts, the factors influencing physical activity, and how populations across the world understand and live the concept of physical activity. It discusses the key challenges and opportunities for sustaining physical activity within geographically and culturally diverse contexts of LMICs; introduces the reader to contemporary global physical activity approaches, models and policies; and presents case studies from around the world, including Asia, Africa, South America, the Pacific and Europe. Overall, the text relates theory to practical examples to facilitate a better understanding of physical activity in context, emphasizes the need for targeted, context-specific and locally relevant interventions to create PA-enabling environments in LMICs, and highlights the role of a range of stakeholders, including policy makers and urban planners, sport and recreation services, mass media, educators and the civil society in shaping population physical activity levels. Taken together, this edited volume brings together the latest research on PA in LMICs from around the world, informs and directs future research and necessary policy change towards the sustainable integration of PA opportunities, and seeks to ultimately foster and promote population-based PA in LMIC settings. By presenting empirical data and policy recommendations, this text will appeal to scholars, researchers and practitioners with an interest in physical activity research, public health, health promotion, sociology of sport, and sports sciences in LMICs, as well as policy makers and experts working in health promotion, public health, sports and fitness, but also in the urban planning and infrastructure and governmental industries.

This report provides a summary of the main findings from the latest global assessment of levels of physical inactivity globally, regionally and by country in adult populations. These new comparable estimates are presented globally, and by regions, World Bank categories and by age and sex for year 2022; and as trends from 2000. In addition, and for the first time, this analysis identifies which countries are estimated to be “on track” to achieve the 2030 target for reducing physical inactivity. The implications of these data for governments and stakeholders are presented as six key policy actions, each consistent with the WHO Global action plan on physical activity.

Patient safety is fundamental to the provision of health care in all settings. However, avoidable adverse events, errors and risks associated with health care remain major challenges for patient safety globally. The Seventy-second World Health Assembly in 2019 adopted resolution WHA72.6 on global action on patient safety and mandated for development of a global patient safety action plan. This global action plan was adopted by Seventy-Fourth World Health Assembly in 2021 with a vision of “a world in which no one is harmed in health care, and every patient receives safe and respectful care, every time, everywhere”. The purpose of the action plan is to provide strategic direction for all stakeholders for eliminating avoidable harm in health care and improving patient safety in different practice domains through policy actions on safety and quality of health services, as well as for implementation of recommendations at the point of care. The action plan provides a framework for countries to develop their respective national action plans on patient safety, as well to align existing strategic instruments for improving patient safety in all clinical and health-related programmes.