Future Health whitepaper outlines Abu Dhabi blueprint for healthy living

Future Health — A Global Initiative by Abu Dhabi has published a new whitepaper outlining a practical approach for governments to promote healthy living at scale.

Titled “The Future of Healthy Living: A $16.4 Trillion Opportunity”, the paper was developed by the McKinsey Health Institute in cooperation with the Healthy Living Programme at the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi.

It combines global analysis with Abu Dhabi’s experience as a model for cross-government action and finds that addressing behavioural, metabolic and environmental risk factors could generate an estimated annual global GDP uplift of US$16.4 trillion by 2050, equivalent to nearly 9 percent of projected global GDP.

The analysis also estimates that eliminating modifiable risk factors could avert around 1.5 billion disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) by 2050, equivalent to approximately 47 percent of projected global disease burden, while adding up to 12 years to healthy life expectancy at birth.

The scale of the opportunity varies between countries according to demographics, dominant health risks and progress already made in reducing them.

The whitepaper sets out a five-step approach for governments: define clear ambitions and targets, identify the greatest health and economic opportunities, design a coordinated portfolio of interventions, implement and scale effective measures, and use data and feedback to learn and adapt.

It highlights Abu Dhabi’s Healthy Living Programme, which coordinates efforts across government, the private sector and communities to embed prevention into the environments where people live, learn, work and travel.

More than 28 initiatives are being implemented across areas including food, schools, workplaces, community infrastructure and physical activity, supporting a shift from reactive healthcare towards a more proactive model centred on prevention.

The paper notes that 19 of 23 major preventable drivers influencing population health identified by the McKinsey Health Institute sit largely outside the formal healthcare system, underlining the need for cross-government and community-wide action.

Practical measures in Abu Dhabi include new standards governing the promotion and placement of unhealthy food and beverage products in physical and online supermarkets, including restrictions on their display at entrances, checkouts and high-visibility aisle locations, while keeping products available to consumers.

Noura Khamis Al Ghaithi, Under-Secretary of the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, said longer life expectancy and the continued burden of non-communicable diseases require a different approach to health.

She said the future of healthcare must extend beyond treating illness towards anticipating risks, intervening earlier and creating conditions that enable people to remain healthy throughout their lives.

Ahmad Al Khazraji, Executive Director of the Healthy Living Programme at the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi, said the programme aims to turn people’s desire to live healthier lives into practical daily behaviour by reshaping residential, educational, workplace and mobility environments.

He added that the approach draws on scientific evidence, behavioural science and cooperation between government, businesses and communities.

Lars Hartenstein of the McKinsey Health Institute said reducing preventable risk factors can enable people to live longer in good health while increasing economic participation and productivity, requiring coordinated action across the sectors that shape everyday life.

The paper forms part of the “Abu Dhabi Insights and Perspectives” series under Future Health and its findings will continue to be explored throughout the initiative’s year-round programme and at the Future Health Abu Dhabi 2026 summit from 20th to 22nd October.