News | RIVM

Positive changes visible but more is needed to achieve goals of physical activity policy

The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) has investigated the progress and outcomes of the Dutch Action Plan on Physical Activity, implemented between 2023 and 2025.

RIVM offers municipalities and provinces support for healthy choices when space is limited

A healthy environment is one that is green and offers sufficient space for physical activity and social encounters. However, public space is limited in the Netherlands and its use is under pressure. This is why it is important for municipalities and provinces to be able to make healthy, science-based choices. RIVM has developed a few rules of thumb for this.

Two out of every one hundred pedestrians and same proportion of cyclists sustain injuries due to accidents

Every year, approximately 2% of all people in the Netherlands sustain injuries from falling in the street. Another 2% are injured in cycling accidents. These percentages are higher among people under the age of 25.

More and more adults drinking little alcohol or not at all

More and more adults are drinking no alcohol, or no more than one glass a day. Whereas 38 per cent drank little to no alcohol in 2012, this percentage rose to 45 per cent in 2024.

Structural policy plans and specific actions needed to encourage physical activity

Encouraging people in the Netherlands to be more physical active requires a structural, long-term physical activity policy that is not linked to a particular government term or short-term program.

Part of the Dutch adults are sufficiently physically active, but activity is not spread sufficiently throughout the week

More than one in ten Dutch people aged 18 and over engage in sufficient minutes of physical activity, but do not sufficiently spread out this throughout the week.

In 2023 more Dutch people play sports on a weekly basis

In 2023, 56% of the Dutch population aged four and over played sports at least once a week. This figure marks an increase from 53% in 2022. Notably, the percentage of individuals with physical disabilities who played sports weekly saw a significant rise, from 23% to 29%.

Number of Combined Lifestyle Intervention participants more than doubles in one year

The number of participants that has started the Combined Lifestyle Intervention (CLI) has more than doubled over the course of a single year. Nationwide, over 82,000 people have now started the CLI. According to RIVM’s annual report, most of the participants achieve a good outcome.

Adherence to Physical Activity Guidelines particularly low among young adults

The number of people in the Netherlands aged four and over who meet the Physical Activity Guidelines has fallen since 2020. In 2022, 44.3% of the population was sufficiently physically active.