The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), the Royal Danish Embassy in Bangkok and Novo Nordisk Pharma Thailand have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish “Bangkok, City for Better Health”, a public–private partnership to promote urban well-being, tackle obesity and support healthier lifestyles among Bangkok’s younger generations. The signing ceremony was held at the Embassy of Denmark and also marked the unveiling of a new “Childhood Obesity Curriculum”.
Under the Cities for Better Health initiative, the partners will work to prevent and manage obesity, cardiometabolic diseases and other non-communicable diseases, with a particular focus on children in Bangkok. According to the project, more than 40 percent of Thais live with overweight or obesity, rising to around 58 percent in Bangkok, and obesity is a major driver of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease.
The programme is structured around three pillars: the Childhood Obesity Curriculum for BMA schools from the second semester of 2025, new recreational facilities in Lumphini and Benchakitti parks inspired by the “Spor 10” project in Copenhagen, and efforts to improve the quality, safety and nutritional balance of school lunches. Planned park upgrades include pickleball courts and muscle-training areas to expand access to physical activity.
At the ceremony, Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt, Danish Ambassador to Thailand Danny Annan and Novo Nordisk Pharma Thailand General Manager Cihan Serdar Kizilcik highlighted the role of public–private cooperation in addressing obesity and cardiometabolic diseases. A panel with representatives from the BMA, the Ministry of Public Health and the Thai NCD Alliance discussed how urban lifestyles contribute to higher cardiometabolic disease rates than in rural areas and the health challenges facing Bangkok and Thailand.
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