Antara News·Indonesia·Monday, November 9, 2026 at 07:12 AM UTC

Govt targets 80 pct of population with sufficient physical activity

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Mecca Yumna, Resinta Sulistiyandari

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian government is promoting efforts to ensure 80 percent of the population gets sufficient physical activity by 2029, following a WHO estimate that one in four teenagers is physically inactive.

"The government aims to have 80 percent of the population meet physical activity recommendations by 2029, in line with the Global Action Plan on Physical Activity (GAPPA) targets to increase physical activity among teenagers and adults," the ministry's Head of the Communications and Public Information Bureau, Aji Muhawarman, said on Monday.

According to WHO's latest global estimates for the period of October 26–31, 2026, around 240 million teenagers aged 11–17 do not get the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity per day.

Then only 11 percent of teenage girls are active every day, while 17 percent of teenage boys are active every day.

Furthermore, the ministry said that 60.61 percent of the 12,287,873 school-age children who took part in the 2025 Free Health Check (CKG) lacked physical activity.

Of the 11,194,065 school-age children who underwent physical fitness screening, data showed that 73.42 percent had poor or very low levels of physical fitness.

This way, the government is promoting several initiatives, such as the 7 Habits of Great Indonesian Children program by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, CKG in schools, the Nutrition Action Movement for middle and high school students, and Saka Bakti Husada, an official health-focused scouting unit.

Then the Healthy Living Community Movement (GERMAS) and Car Free Day, the #JanjiHidupSehat digital campaign, the Healthy District/City Program to provide safe spaces for movement, as well as the National Sports Grand Design.

Aji conveyed that school age is a crucial period for promoting physical activity, as inactivity rates are highest among children and teenagers, according to the Indonesian Health Survey (SKI2023) and CKG.

He noted that habits formed during this period often continue into adulthood, while childhood is also a key stage for bone and muscle development that cannot be replicated later in life.

He added that the initiative also aims to prevent non-communicable diseases from an early age, as CKG findings revealed cases of excess weight, obesity, and high blood pressure among schoolchildren and teenagers.

He then mentioned that 52.53 percent of districts and cities organized GERMAS activities at least eight times a year in 2025, exceeding the 40-percent target. However, only 39.49 percent had physical activity policies, falling short of the 50-percent target.

Meanwhile, 41.63 percent of districts and cities conducted physical activity programs in 2025, including group exercise, sports, fitness assessments, and other activities to promote physical activity, surpassing the 25-percent target.

"Promoting physical activity at school age requires less investment but delivers long-term benefits, compared with the greater cost and difficulty of changing habits in adults who already have health problems," he remarked.

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