FG CALLS FOR RIGOROUS RESEARCH, EFFECTIVE REGULATION OF TRADITIONAL MEDICINE

FG CALLS FOR RIGOROUS RESEARCH, EFFECTIVE REGULATION OF TRADITIONAL MEDICINE

The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to repositioning traditional medicine as a key component of Nigeria’s health and economic development agenda, with emphasis on scientific research, regulation, quality assurance and safety.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, stated this in Abuja at the commemoration of the 2026 African Traditional Medicine Day, themed “Research and Development in Traditional Medicine towards Achieving Universal Health Coverage in the African Region.”

Salako said the commemoration provided an opportunity to strengthen research, generate evidence and ensure the safety and quality of traditional medicine products and practices.

“The future of traditional medicine must be built on rigorous research, effective regulation, quality assurance, ethical practice, documentation and continuous evaluation,” he said, stressing that cultural acceptance alone cannot constitute scientific evidence.

He noted that the Nigerian Traditional Medicine Policy provides the framework for the sector’s development and integration into the national healthcare system, supported by the Ministry’s Department of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine, the 2025 Strategic Plan of Action for its implementation, and the Code of Ethics and Practice for Traditional Medicine Practitioners.

Salako said these efforts align with the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative (NHSRII), particularly its focus on strengthening the healthcare value chain through local production and advancing equitable, quality healthcare delivery.

Government priorities, he said, include strengthening research and evidence generation; regulation and quality assurance; documentation and preservation of indigenous knowledge; local production and innovation; and the integration of safe and effective traditional medicine into conventional care.

He called on practitioners to embrace research and ethical practice, researchers to intensify scientific investigation, regulators to enforce quality frameworks, and investors to explore opportunities in validated traditional medicine products.

“Traditional medicine and modern medicine should not be viewed simply as competing systems. Evidence demonstrates that they can work together safely and effectively,” Salako said, describing both as complementary components of a people-centred healthcare system.

In her goodwill message, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Women’s Health, Dr. Adanna Steinacker, called for indigenous medical knowledge to be documented, protected and validated through research to establish safety, efficacy and dosage.

She cautioned that traditional medicine must not delay antenatal care, skilled delivery, emergency treatment or timely referral, and said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda is committed to inclusive and culturally responsive Universal Health Coverage.

The World Health Organisation Representative, Dr. Hamza Omotayo, commended Nigeria’s progress in strengthening the sector, including through the Department of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine and the Nigerian Pharmacopoeia.

He disclosed that WHO had trained 40 traditional medicine practitioners on the harvesting and preparation of standardised medicines, and urged accelerated documentation of indigenous knowledge and equitable benefit-sharing with communities.

The Federal Government reaffirmed its commitment to harnessing Nigeria’s traditional medicine heritage while ensuring that products promoted to the public meet appropriate standards of safety, quality and effectiveness.

It called on stakeholders to move beyond reflection to action by investing in research, strengthening institutions and ensuring responsible regulation.

Ado Bako

Assistant Director

Information and Public Relations