Promoting Adolescent and Youth Health Through Physical Activity Initiatives and Interventions in Sub-Saharan Africa: The ARISE-NUTRINT and DASH Initiatives
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Regular physical activity (PA) is essential for maintaining health and wellbeing across all life stages, particularly in children and adolescents. Despite its benefits, most adolescents fail to meet the World Health Organization's PA recommendations, with global trends indicating alarmingly low participation rates, particularly among girls. This issue is pronounced in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where physical inactivity is a significant public health concern, contributing to rising obesity rates. Environmental, socio-economic, and cultural barriers further exacerbate low PA engagement, including extreme weather conditions, lack of recreational infrastructure, gender norms, and economic constraints. Addressing these challenges requires targeted interventions, including education, improved infrastructure, and policy implementation. Innovative programs such as ARISE-NUTRINT and DASH aim to enhance adolescent health in SSA through nutrition and PA-focused strategies. This commentary paper explores existing barriers to PA, evaluates promising on-going efforts and interventions, and highlights opportunities for promoting PA in SSA through community engagement, digital platforms, and cross-sector collaboration. Implementing sustainable and culturally tailored strategies is crucial to reversing current trends and fostering long-term health benefits for adolescents in SSA.
Authors: Nikola Todorovic, Marijana Ranisavljev, Darinka Korovljev, Joy Mauti, Christine Neumann, Innocent Mboya, Elisabetta Ferrero, Millogo Ourohiré, Sylvain Somé, Shuyan Liu, Sachin Shinde, Ramadhani A. Noor, Till Bärnighausen, Sergej M. Ostojic
Institutions: University of Agder, Center for Health, Exercise and Sport Sciences, Heidelberg University, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg Institute of Global Health, Africa Academy for Public Health, KCMC University, Centre de Recherche en Santé de Nouna, Institut de Recherche en Sciences de la Santé, Stiftung Charité, Deutsches Zentrum für Psychische Gesundheit, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Language: English
Topic: Physical Activity and Health
Subfield: Physiology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,775
Awards: DASH - Netzwerk für Design und Evaluation von Interventionen und Politik zur Jugendgesundheit in Subsahara-Afrika - Verbesserung der sexuellen und reproduktiven Gesundheit, Reducing nutrition-related noncommunicable diseases in adolescence and youth: interventions and policies to boost nutrition fluency and diet quality in Africa
OpenAlex ID: W4414618924