Medicinal Plants: Health,Livelihoods, and the Environment

For developing countries, the worldwide trade in medicinal plants has major implications for the provision of health care, the creation of livelihoods, and the protection of threatened biological resources. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that, in some poor countries, plant-based traditional medicines account for up to 80% of primary health care provided. In 2000, WHO also estimated the value of the global trade in medicinal plants at US $60 billion—an economic resource that could significantly improve the lives of struggling rural peoples. This book surveys several decades of IDRC-supported research, experience and experimentation in Africa, Asia, and Latin America into finding ways to realize the promises and potential of medicinal plants. It concludes with a series of recommendations for governments, industry, researchers, local communities, and international donors, suggesting ways in which national and global policies—as well as flexible local-level solutions, responsive to individual communities’ histories and needs—can help realize the multiple benefits of medicinal plants.This book serves as a focal point for an IDRC thematic Web site on medicinal plants: www.idrc.ca/in_focus_medplants. The full text is available online and leads the reader into a virtual web of resources that explores several decades of research into this important issue. A CD of the In_Focus Web site is included with the book.