Honduras Activate is a health initiative created by

Juan Orlando Hernandez ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, t ...

in order to promote physical activity and a healthy life style among the Honduran population. Honduras Activate aims to reduce significantly the amount of non-communicable chronic diseases (NCCD) such as hypertension, obesity, diabetes, among others. The program has gained both domestic and international recognition, with the PAHO and WHO praising the initiative and its goals.

Introduction

With the number of obesity, hypertension and diabetes cases on the rise in Latin America, President

decided to promote physical activity in Honduras through new parks and recreational spaces nationwide. The parks are equipped with soccer fields, basketball courts, running tracks and exercise machines.

Honduras Activate events

In commemoration of

World Health Day World Health Day is a global health awareness day celebrated every year on 7 April, under the sponsorship of the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as other related organizations. In 1948, the WHO held the First World Health Assembly. Th ...

, President Hernandez launched a new phase for the Honduras Activate program that week. On Sunday April the 12th Hernandez and thousands of Honduras participated in 21.5 km hike in El Tigre (Honduras) Island. Honduras Activate events are now celebrated every Sunday in different National parks of the country. The event is marked by different activities to choose from. Activities include Hiking, Biking and different distance Marathons. The Honduras Activate events have not only become popular for its health component, but its positive effect on domestic tourism. Every Sunday thousands of participants from all over the country participate in these events, which gives them the opportunity to visit different cities and national parks.

International recognition

The

WHO Who or WHO may refer to: * Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun * Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * World Health Organization Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book ''Horton Hear ...

and

PAHO The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is an international public health agency working to improve the health and living standards of the people of the Americas. It is part of the United Nations system, serving as the Regional Office for ...

have been very supportive of the Honduras Activate Program. Both organizations have shown interest to implement this program in other countries which also suffer from non-communicable chronic diseases. Moreover, Hernandez was invited to be the Keynote speaker at a joint WHO/PAHO conference in Washington DC in September 2015, where he disclosed the goals and benefits of the program. Due to the success of the program, both organizations named Hernandez “Health Champion 2015” since he was the first Latin American president to promote these types of activity.

Highlights

* First Honduras Activate took place in El Tigre (Honduras) Island in April 2015. * Some events have surpassed 20,000 participants. * The first international event of Honduras Activity took place in

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

in July 2015.

References

{{Reflist Medical and health organizations based in Honduras Exercise organizations