Africa to commemorate African Traditional Medicines Day

[Guest guest]

Compiled by the Government Communication and Information System

Date: 28 Aug 2008

Title: Africa to commemorate African Traditional Medicines Day

By Gabi Khumalo

Cameroon - Health Minister Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang is expected to

attend the sixth commemoration of the African Traditional Medicine

Day in Cameroon on Sunday.

African Traditional Medicine Day is celebrated on 31 August every

year to promote the use of traditional medicine in everyday health

care. The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the day in 2003.

South Africa will chair a panel discussion on traditional medicine as

a primary approach to health care.

The commemoration will be followed by the African Regional Committee

of the World Health Organisation (WHO-AFRO) in Yaounde from 1 to 5

September 2008.

The meeting of the WHO-AFRO will focus on Africa's progress reports

on tobacco control, actions to reduce the harmful use of alcohol,

cancer prevention, women's health, strengthening public health

laboratories, patient safety in African health services and issues

and solutions.

It will further focus on oral health strategy, primary healthcare and

health systems in Africa, acceleration of HIV prevention, treatment

and care, polio eradication, scaling up interventions for the

reduction of maternal mortality, malaria control and improving

immunisation practices.

It is estimated that about 60 to 80 percent of South Africans use

traditional medicine.

Early this month, the national Health Department announced that the

draft Policy on African Traditional Medicine (ATM) had been gazetted

for comment by the public before being adopted as an official policy

guiding the practice traditional medicine in the country.

The draft policy calls for the incorporation of African traditional

medicine into the country's health systems based on the number of

people who already use it.

It also recommends that a national institute of African traditional

medicine be established to coordinate, undertake and provide

leadership in the research of African traditional medicine.

The draft policy proposes that the envisaged institute be responsible

for ensuring the safety, quality and timely availability of African

traditional medicines and raw materials.

Members of the public and organisations have until end of October

2008 to comment on the draft policy.

The draft policy can be found on http://www.doh.gov.za/docs/policy-

f.html - BuaNews

--- End forwarded message ---

[Guest guest]

Compiled by the Government Communication and Information System

Date: 28 Aug 2008

Title: Africa to commemorate African Traditional Medicines Day

By Gabi Khumalo

Cameroon - Health Minister Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang is expected to

attend the sixth commemoration of the African Traditional Medicine

Day in Cameroon on Sunday.

African Traditional Medicine Day is celebrated on 31 August every

year to promote the use of traditional medicine in everyday health

care. The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the day in 2003.

South Africa will chair a panel discussion on traditional medicine as

a primary approach to health care.

The commemoration will be followed by the African Regional Committee

of the World Health Organisation (WHO-AFRO) in Yaounde from 1 to 5

September 2008.

The meeting of the WHO-AFRO will focus on Africa's progress reports

on tobacco control, actions to reduce the harmful use of alcohol,

cancer prevention, women's health, strengthening public health

laboratories, patient safety in African health services and issues

and solutions.

It will further focus on oral health strategy, primary healthcare and

health systems in Africa, acceleration of HIV prevention, treatment

and care, polio eradication, scaling up interventions for the

reduction of maternal mortality, malaria control and improving

immunisation practices.

It is estimated that about 60 to 80 percent of South Africans use

traditional medicine.

Early this month, the national Health Department announced that the

draft Policy on African Traditional Medicine (ATM) had been gazetted

for comment by the public before being adopted as an official policy

guiding the practice traditional medicine in the country.

The draft policy calls for the incorporation of African traditional

medicine into the country's health systems based on the number of

people who already use it.

It also recommends that a national institute of African traditional

medicine be established to coordinate, undertake and provide

leadership in the research of African traditional medicine.

The draft policy proposes that the envisaged institute be responsible

for ensuring the safety, quality and timely availability of African

traditional medicines and raw materials.

Members of the public and organisations have until end of October

2008 to comment on the draft policy.

The draft policy can be found on http://www.doh.gov.za/docs/policy-

f.html - BuaNews

--- End forwarded message ---