Government mulls use of herbal medicines in hospitals

Health CS Aden Duale speaking in Chuka Town, Tharaka Nithi County recently.

Kenya has promised to integrate herbal and traditional medicine into the national health system. However, the move will be guided by laws and standards that are still being developed.

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale said the government wants the process to protect patients, respect culture and support universal health coverage.

Duale spoke in New Delhi, India, during the World Health Organization’s Second Global Summit on Traditional Medicine, where ministers, scientists, indigenous leaders and practitioners from more than 100 countries gathered to shape the future of traditional medicine worldwide.

The CS said Kenya recognises the long role of traditional medicine in communities and wants to bring it into the formal health system in an organised and safe way.

“Kenya’s Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine (TCIM) approach prioritises patient safety, scientific evidence, innovation, environmental stewardship and the respectful integration of indigenous knowledge,” Duale said.

“Kenya’s constitution safeguards biodiversity, promotes equitable benefit-sharing and recognises indigenous knowledge as a cornerstone of sustainable development.”

He said the government is already putting in place key laws and guidelines to make this happen.

“To operationalise this vision, Kenya has established a comprehensive policy and regulatory framework, including the Traditional, Complementary and Integrative Medicine Policy, the Traditional Health Practitioners Bill, the National Research Framework and the Herbalists’ Handbook. These instruments are designed to professionalise practice, strengthen safety and quality standards and enhance evidence generation,” Duale said.

Traditional medicine is widely used in Kenya, especially in rural areas and informal settlements in towns. Most of these practices operate outside the formal health system, with little regulation.

The Ministry of Health said regulation of herbal and traditional medicine products is currently handled by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board, which oversees products from development to sale.

The board uses digital regulatory systems and expert committees to assess safety and quality.

Kenya is also recognised as a Regional Centre of Regulatory Excellence in pharmacovigilance, meaning it plays a leading role in monitoring medicine safety in the region.

Duale said technology is helping improve oversight. Digital tools and artificial intelligence are being used to speed up evaluation, improve transparency and strengthen decision making on herbal products.

He said beyond safety, the government sees traditional medicine as an economic opportunity.

“Kenya is also strengthening research and innovation through strategic partnerships that leverage artificial intelligence, genomics and digital platforms to improve standardisation, strengthen evidence and support the global integration of validated TCIM practices,” Duale said.

The long-term plan is to bring traditional medicine into primary healthcare in a structured way.

This would include accrediting practitioners, setting clear referral systems between traditional healers and hospitals, expanding research and possibly including some services under the national social health insurance scheme.

“Kenya is ready to work closely with WHO, Africa CDC, fellow member states and global partners to unlock the full potential of traditional medicine—ensuring it is safe, well-regulated, evidence-based and culturally grounded—to strengthen health systems and improve health outcomes across Africa,” Duale said.

The WHO summit in India provided global context for Kenya’s position. According to WHO, traditional medicine remains a major source of care for millions of people worldwide.

Nearly 90 per cent of WHO member states report that between 40 and 90 per cent of their populations use some form of traditional medicine.

“WHO is committed to uniting the wisdom of millennia with the power of modern science and technology to realise the vision of health for all,” director general Tedros AGhebreyesus said.

“By engaging responsibly, ethically and equitably, and by harnessing innovation from AI to genomics, we can unlock the potential of traditional medicine to deliver safer, smarter and more sustainable health solutions for every community and for our planet.”

WHO said integrating traditional medicine into health systems is critical at a time when health services are under pressure.

Nearly half of the world’s population lacks access to essential health services, while more than two billion people face financial hardship when seeking care.

WHO says safe and regulated traditional medicine can help expand access and choice, while supporting prevention and health promotion.

WHO chief scientist Dr Sylvie Briand said integration must be based on science and strong regulation.

“We need to apply the same scientific rigour to the assessment and validation of biomedicine and traditional medicines, while respecting biodiversity, cultural specificities and ethical principles,” she said.

WHO also highlighted that traditional medicine underpins fast-growing global industries such as herbal medicines, yet less than one per cent of global health research funding goes to this area.

To address this, WHO is launching a Traditional Medicine Global Library with more than 1.6 million scientific records to support research, policy and regulation, especially in lower-income countries.

“Advancing traditional medicine is an evidence-based, ethical and environmental imperative,” Dr Shyama Kuruvilla of WHO’s Global Traditional Medicine Centre said.