Towards sustainable local production of traditional medicines in the African Region

ABSTRACT

The majority of the population in the WHO African Region and other developing countries; particularly rural dwellers use plant-based traditional medicines for health care. Most developing countries are endowed with vast resources of medicinal and aromatic plants; which have been used over centuries for the treatment of diseases. The global resurgence of interest in herbal medicines has created a large market for plant derived remediesthat developing countries could exploit to their advantage; provided they could be produced with acceptable quality and safety specifications. This article highlights the current limitations of traditional medicinal productsin the Member States; the essential requirements for the local production of traditional medicines; the status of local production in WHO African Region; approaches to sourcing plant raw materials as well as challenges. Methods for value addition; processing and product improvement for the commercial utilization of medicinal plants are indicated