On March 25, 2022, the World Health Organisation and the Government of India signed an agreement to establish the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine. All set to be built in the Gujarat flourishing town, Jamnagar, this GCMT aims to harness the potential of traditional medicine from across the world through modern science and technology to improve the health of people and the planet.

The foundation-laying ceremony is scheduled to occur this afternoon, with Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi doing the honours. This ceremony will also be presided by Mauritius PM Pravind Kumar Jugnauth and WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus. 

“For many millions of people around the world, traditional medicine is the first port of call to treat many diseases. Ensuring all people have access to safe and effective treatment is an essential part of WHO’s mission, and this new centre will help to harness the power of science to strengthen the evidence base for traditional medicine. I’m grateful to the Government of India for its support, and we look forward to making it a success.”

– Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General

Around the globe, about 80 per cent of the population uses traditional medicine while 40 per cent of the approved pharmaceutical products in use today are derived from natural substances. However, our national health systems are not equipped to incorporate these traditional methods of medicine. They have also been a crucial point of development and research. Nobel-prize winning research on artemisinin for malaria control started with a review of ancient Chinese medicine texts. Presently, Artificial intelligence (AI) is being used to map evidence and trends in traditional medicine and to screen natural products for pharmacokinetic properties.

This pathbreaking effort on part of the World Health Organisation and the Government of India is a monumental step toward medical research and the development of traditional medicine in the country.