Princess Haya's sporting call

May 4, 2010, 12:03 GMT

Jordan's Princess Haya thinks sport is a "necessity" for young people.

The princess - the wife of Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum - has urged governments in the Middle East to take action to curb the unhealthy lifestyles of many young people in the region.

Speaking on the 'Dubai Tonight' TV show, she said: "We've seen throughout the region now incredible statistics that are going frighteningly on an upward curve every day of diabetes, of heart disease among our youth.

"The lifestyle that we should be promoting is now becoming as urgent as some of the things we prioritised before. Really sport is now a necessity. It's a necessity to tackle non-communicable diseases, it's a necessity to ensure the safety and security of our youth and their future.

"For that simple reason alone, it's at the government level, through ministries of education, through ministries of health, that this now has to be accepted as a top of the agenda."

Last week, Haya's husband spoke about the spread of diabetes in the country, branding the rise in the condition "unacceptable".

He said: "About 40 percent of our children have diabetes. That is unacceptable. Sports is one way to address those problems."