A professor of Biochemistry at the Kwara state university malete, Prof Emmanuel Oladipo Ajani, Wednesday expressed concern over gradual extinction of plants that are of medicinal importance in Nigeria.
He warned that industrial development across the country was fast eroding plants of medicinal value and that unless an urgent measure is taking to conserve the little ones available, the country might continue to experience health crisis.
Ajani who teaches in the university’s faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences, stated this in the ninth inaugural lecture of the university which he delivered at the institution.
His lecture was titled “Man vs Diseases: The Green Remedy” and was the first to be delivered in the faculty of Pure and Applied Sciences.
The inagural lecturer who noted that drug resistance for malaria was on the increase , said for Nigeria to truely eliminate some diseases by 2030 and also achieve sustainable development goal SDG by 2030, it should take a proactive steps in incoporating traditional medicine in her Health care delivery system.
“Many plants that are of medicinal importance are already going into extinction as a result of industrial development. Strategies should to manage and conserve Nigerian indigenous plant. The development of a compendium of indigenous plants with potentials and clinical benefits is highly recommended “,he said .
The inaugural lecturer who is also the dean of the faculty of pure and applied sciences, appealed to the Kwara state government to assist the Kwara state university in the establishment of a well equipment “Bioinformatics and Computanational Biology laboratories” to enable it carry research in natural products development .
