Prof. Samuel Ato Duncan, President-General of COA Research and Manufacturing Ltd and President of GHAFTRAM, announced that the Green Gold Agenda championed by GHAFTRAM is projected to generate $5 billion annually for the country.
He noted that this amount surpasses the revenue generated from cocoa.
The Green Gold Agenda aims to leverage the potential of traditional medicine by conducting research and developing it to meet international standards, positioning it as a new commodity for Ghana in the global market.
“We expect this to generate over US$ 5 billion annually, which is more than that of our proceeds from the cocoa industry,” he stated.
Prof. Samuel Ato Duncan made this statement during the 22nd African Traditional Medicine (ATM) Day and the 25th Traditional Medicine (TM) Week celebration, held over the weekend at the Osu Presby Church in Accra.
He pointed out that the herbal medicine industry is among the fastest-growing sectors globally, driven by factors such as increasing consumer preference for natural products, the perception of their effectiveness with minimal side effects, rising costs of synthetic pharmaceuticals, and budget cuts in modern healthcare.
He noted that the global market for herbal medicinal products is projected to reach $177.65 billion by 2029.
Furthermore, he highlighted that in Asian countries like China, India, Singapore, and Malaysia, a substantial portion of their total economic revenue comes from the traditional medicine industry.
“It is based on these significant contributions of Traditional Medicine that is why WHO developed and launched the WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy 2014–2023, which also emphasised the integration of traditional and complementary medicine to promote universal healthcare and to ensure the quality, safety, and efficiency of such medicines,” he stated.
Despite the promising statistics, Prof. Samuel Ato Duncan expressed disappointment that the Traditional Medicine Industry in Ghana has received minimal attention from successive governments.
As President of GHAFTRAM, he urged the government to consider incorporating approved traditional medicines into the national health insurance scheme.
He stated that the federation would assist traditional medicine practitioners in standardizing their products and practices, and would also form a research committee comprising representatives from reputable research institutions and regulatory bodies.
Additionally, Prof. Duncan announced plans to establish a traditional medicine development and research fund to support research and development efforts in Ghana, as well as seek both domestic and international funding to enhance processing and distribution within the industry.
