Accra, Aug.18 GNA - The Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the Ghana Federation of Traditional Medicine Practitioners Associations (GHAFTRAM) on Friday said it was developing Essential Medicines List (EML) of traditional medicine products to be used nation-wide. In line with this, a task force comprising experts from the World Health Organisation (WHO), Ministry of Health (MOH), Noguchi Memorial Research Centre (NMRC), Centre for Scientific Research into Plant Medicine (CSRPM), Food and Drugs Board (FDB) was constituted to mount exhibitions at three zonal areas to facilitate the development of the list.

Mr George Agyemfra, Deputy Director, Traditional Medicine Directorate, Ministry of Health said the exhibition mounted by GHAFTRAM was to enable the task team to select traditional medical products that would facilitate the development of the EML. Professor Laud Okine, Director General of the CSRPM said criteria for the selection of the traditional medical products was based on the medicine' relevance for priority diseases and common ailments where the traditional medicine was effective in the treatment of diseases, such as malaria, hypertension, HIV/AIDS, diabetes and diarrhoea. He said the task team would look at the capacity for sustainable industrial production of the traditional herbal medicine as well as the sustainability of the raw material supply.

He said the selection process would also consider the availability of quality assurance and standardization processes and suitable dosage form.

Prof. Okine further noted that the experts would look out for the evidence of long-term use of traditional medicine and proven safety and efficacy as well as the stability and evidence of performance at various conditions.

Nana Kwadwo Obiri, National Organiser of GHAFTRAM commended the MOH and the various scientific institutions in the country for taking interest in the activities in developing traditional medicine. He however, expressed concern about the high fees charged by the FDB and CSRPM, which he said, was causing anxiety and preventing some of GHAFTRAM from registering their products. 18 Aug. 2006