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Objective: This study aimed to review health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA) policies and initiatives introduced in Saudi Arabia (SA) since 2016 and identify the gaps in their design and implementation., Methods: A combination of methods was used, including semi-structured interviews with key informants from relevant entities (such as those from the ministries of health, education, sports, tourism, and other regulatory bodies) and a review of policy/initiative documents provided by them. Stakeholder mapping led by local experts and snowball sampling supported the identification of key informants. Three existing frameworks-the World Health Organization's HEPA Policy Audit Tool, the Global Observatory for Physical Activity (PA) Policy Inventory, and the European Monitoring Framework for PA Indicators-were used to develop data collection instruments., Results: The review identified 44 policies/initiatives from different sectors. The Saudi Sports for All Federation is the leader in PA promotion and community sports development. However, there is a lack of multisectoral agenda and governance structures for PA promotion. The overlap between initiatives by different key informants results in duplication of efforts, including initiatives to promote PA among the general public led by competitive professional sports and community-based sports., Conclusion: The study findings indicate that several policies/initiatives have been implemented in SA since 2016. However, there is a need to focus on the challenges or barriers that affect the sustainability of policies/initiatives. A system-based approach can help build on sectoral synergies, thereby accelerating progress in engaging the Saudi population with PA., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 AlMarzooqi, Alsukait, Aljuraiban, Alothman, AlAhmed, Rakic, Herbst, Al-Hazzaa and Alqahtani.)

Background: E-government platforms provide an opportunity to use a novel data source for population health surveillance (also known as e-health). Absher is a Saudi e-government platform with 23 million authenticated users, including residents and citizens in Saudi Arabia. All Absher users were invited to participate in a web-based survey to estimate the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases and their risk factors in Saudi Arabia., Objective: To assess the potential of using an e-government platform (Absher) to administer web-based health surveys., Methods: A cross-sectional, web-based health survey was administered to Absher users between April 2019 and March 2020. The survey instrument included eight items and took <5 min to complete. The respondents' data were compared to Saudi Arabia's 2016 census. Descriptive summary statistics of the prevalence of major noncommuncable diseases are presented and compared to population-based prevalence data from Saudi Arabia's World Health Survey (WHS) 2019. All analysis was conducted using Stata 13.0., Results: Overall, the Absher health survey had a 24.6% response rate, with most respondents being male (84%), Saudi (67%), and between 30 and 44 years of age (49%). Overall, the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases and risk factors among respondents was high for overweight (35%) and obesity (30%) and low for asthma (6%). The prevalence of diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension was between 15 and 17% on average, and 26.5% were smokers. In comparison to population-based World Health Survey estimates, the Absher survey overestimated obesity, diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and smoking rates, and underestimated overweight, whereas asthma prevalence was similar for Absher and the WHS., Conclusions: With improvements in the study design, the use of e-government platforms can provide a useful and potentially low-cost data source for public health research., Competing Interests: Authors FA and AAlq were employed by Elm. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Alluhidan, Alsukait, Alghaith, Saber, Alamri, Al-Muhsen, Alhowaitan, Alqarni, Herbst, Alazemi and Hersi.)