Preceding the WHO Global Meeting to accelerate progress on SDG 3.4, World Obesity held three events in Oman, building momentum around tackling obesity in the region.

The World Obesity Federation hosted its first Gulf Patient Summit in Muscat, Oman, on 5 December 2019. The workshop ran in parallel with the World Obesity Regional Conference on Women and Child First, and the Gulf Obesity Surgical Society (GOSS) 6th annual obesity conference. It brought together 14 patients from across the region for a day of panel discussions and interactive sessions to discuss regional barriers to obesity prevention and treatment, including weight discrimination and stigma.

The Patient Summit featured the contribution of individuals living with the consequences of obesity and how their lives are being rebuilt after successful treatment and intervention. Following the launch of the World Obesity Global Patient Portal in 2019, the event was an opportunity to champion the patient voice.

The Patient Summit and Regional Conference was followed by the first in-person ‘Gulf & Lebanon Recommendations Expert Group’ meeting. The group of experts - brought together and hosted by World Obesity - considered the benefits of regional obesity recommendations for obesity and had in-depth discussions of what they can and should look like. World Obesity will be working with this group over the next 2 years to develop and launch these recommendations, facilitating implementation with local workshops.