In a powerful address at Ghana’s inaugural National Herbal Medicine Symposium, Dr. Angela Ackon, Technical Officer for Quality and Safety at the WHO Ghana Office delivered a stark assessment and a strategic roadmap for the future of Traditional Medicine (TM) in the country. Her message was clear: Ghana possesses a wealth of knowledge and potential, but realizing it requires urgent, phased, and policy-driven action.
Speaking to a gathering of practitioners, researchers, policymakers, and advocates, Dr. Ackon framed the current moment as a critical turning point. She acknowledged the deep understanding of both the challenges and solutions within the sector, as highlighted by other speakers like Dr. Forigudu, but emphasized the need to move from discussion to decisive implementation.
A 20-Year Policy “Long Overdue” for Review
A central pillar of Dr. Ackon’s address was a direct critique of Ghana’s existing framework. She highlighted the nation’s Policy for Traditional Medicine Development, drafted in 2005, noting that it is now “an adult’s lifetime” old.
“I think the review of that policy is overdue, long overdue,” she stated emphatically. “If [the] integration policy from 2011 is ripe for review, what are we talking about?”
The WHO representative revealed that her organization has already supported an evaluation of the 2005 policy’s implementation, producing a report with concrete recommendations. She urged stakeholders to use this document as a foundational tool for crafting a modern, actionable policy that can “congeal [all ideas] into concrete actions.”
A Phased Roadmap: The 5-Year and 10-Year Horizon
Dr. Ackon’s core proposal was a call for disciplined, strategic planning modelled on the successful integration journeys of other nations. She challenged the symposium to avoid trying to “do everything at once” and instead adopt a phased approach.
“In the next five years, starting now, let’s prioritize one, two, three, four things that we would want to tackle,” she advised. This would involve establishing clear milestones and timelines within a defined roadmap.
“Set out a clear roadmap with milestones and timelines,” she continued. “We can use that to actually mobilize resources.”
This focused 5-year plan, she suggested, should then lay the groundwork for more ambitious goals in the subsequent decade. The key is to build momentum through achievable, evaluated, and celebrated successes.
Harnessing “Technical Minds” for Integration
To achieve this, Dr. Ackon stressed the need to move beyond general consensus and into technical detail. She called for the assembly of a “critical team of technical minds” tasked with the hard work of prioritization and planning.
This team would be responsible for harvesting the diverse ideas within the sector and leveraging a renewed national policy to create a unified direction for the full integration of Traditional Medicine into Ghana’s mainstream healthcare system.
Implications for Ghana’s Health Landscape
Dr. Ackon’s address is a significant intervention from a global health authority. It validates the importance of Ghana’s herbal medicine sector while issuing a firm, supportive challenge to modernize its governance. The call to action presents an opportunity for the Ministry of Health, the Food and Drugs Authority, traditional authorities, and research institutions to collaborate as never before.
The success of this proposed roadmap could not only enhance healthcare options for Ghanaians but also position the country as a regional leader in the scientifically-grounded integration of traditional and complementary medicine.
