[Plenary Lecture] – African Ethnopharmacology: The Southern African Perspective

Southern Africa is endowed with a rich floral biodiversity and cultural values of which the inhabitants have taken full advantage. The importance of traditional healers and remedies made from indigenous plants play a crucial role in the health of millions, making traditional herbal medicines an important part of the healthcare systems. This impressive biodiversity, however, presents researchers with many challenges, opportunities and responsibilities. This presentation describes the role southern Africa has played in contributing to the worldwide increase of knowledge in the field of ethnopharmacology. Emphasis will be placed on the screening of medicinal plants in southern African for ethnopharmacological properties which primarily focus on investigating the efficacy of these plants in the search for new therapeutic products. Other important aspects of medicinal plant research related to safety of indigenous medicinal plants and the conservation and sustainable use will be highlighted. Issues on the preservation of indigenous knowledge systems will be tackled. Emerging research areas such as infectious and neglected diseases such as tuberculosis and venereal diseases will be placed under the spotlight. In addition to ethnopharmacological aspects of southern African traditional medicine, issues pertaining to the development and improvement of traditional medicinal plant research are equally important. These include the successful commercialisation of key medicinal plants, legislation to regulate trade and projections on research funding. It is hoped that this presentation will draw attention to the great opportunities for improved research on southern Africa's rich floral biodiversity and cultural values towards the development of herbal medicines through sustainable utilization of the floral heritage.