The federal government Tuesday pledged deeper investments, stronger regulation, and international collaboration to strengthen the evidence base for traditional medicine in Nigeria, to integrate indigenous health practices into the national healthcare system.
Speaking at the commemoration of the 2025 African Traditional Medicine Day in Abuja, the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, said government is committed to transforming traditional medicine into a “reliable and respected part” of the nation’s health architecture under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration.
The event marked this year’s African Traditional Medicine Day, themed: “Strengthen the Evidence Base for Traditional Medicine,” with stakeholders from across the health sector, including regulatory agencies, research institutes and practitioners.
Dr. Salako unveiled two key documents, the Strategic Plan of Action for the Implementation of the Traditional Medicine Policy and the Code of Ethics and Practice for Traditional Medicine Practitioners.
He described them as “roadmaps” for policy implementers and urged practitioners to ensure standardization, safety, and quality assurance.
“Evidence is the bridge between belief and policy. Our goal is to document, standardise, and integrate evidence-based traditional medicine into Nigeria’s national health system, creating opportunities for job creation, local manufacturing, and improved healthcare access.”
Salako outlined several government-led initiatives to strengthen traditional medicine, which include among others, the creation of the Department of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine (TCAM) at the Ministry of Health, Development of the Traditional Medicine Policy for Nigeria and the Nigerian Herbal Pharmacopoeia, which documents over 200 medicinal plants and their uses.
There are plans to revive the Federal College of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (FEDCAM), closed in 2010, to enhance practitioner training and there is directives for all 36 states and the FCT to establish TCAM departments or boards, in line with resolutions from the 62nd National Council on Health.