INNOVATIVE TRENDS IN AFRICAN TRADITIONAL MEDICINE

The human person has been confronted with fundamental health problems. These health challenges have led to the quest for various solutions. As a way to find cure for diseases, the human person discovered the medical values of some plants and herbs which have curative potencies. African people were not left out in this quest to find solution to the medical challenges of the human person and so we have African traditional medicine. African traditional medicine is a form of holistic healthcare system that provides healthcare services based on culture, religious background, knowledge, attitudes and beliefs that are prevalent in a particular African community. Also, Africans view illness as having both natural and supernatural causes and thus must be treated by both physical and spiritual means, using divination, incantations, animal sacrifice, exorcism and herbs. Herbal medicine is the cornerstone of traditional medicine in Africa. With the aid of hermeneutic and phenomenological methods in philosophy, this study discovers that the future of African traditional medicine is very bright if viewed in the context of service provision, increase of healthcare coverage, economic potential and poverty reduction. The study, therefore, calls on African Heads of Governments, NGOs and all lovers of Africa to facilitate the formal recognition and integration of African traditional medicine into conventional medicine in order to engender both sound healthcare delivery and economic development.

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