Geneva/New York, 14 December 2025 – With growing number of people worldwide now using traditional medicine when they cannot afford regular health services, the World Health Organization will hold a global summit this month to collect more evidence and data to inform policies for the safe use of the medicine.
The Geneva-based health organization has announced The Second WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine from 17 to 19 December in New Delhi with the participation of policy makers, practitioners, scientists and Indigenous leaders from around the world. The first summit, hosted by India, was held in August 2023.
WHO said the summit will discuss how to implement the WHO Global traditional medicine strategy through 2034, which aims to advance evidence-based traditional, complementary and integrative medicine and provides guidance on regulation and multi-stakeholder collaboration, UN News reported.
Shyama Kuruvilla, director of WHO’s Global Traditional Medicine Centre, said, “With half the world’s population lacking access to essential health services, traditional medicine is often the closest or only care available for many people.”
“For many others, it’s a preferred choice because it is personalised and holistic. It’s bio-culturally aligned and it supports overall well-being rather than only treating specific disease symptoms.”
Kuruvilla said global demand for traditional medicine is rising due to chronic diseases, mental health needs, stress management and the search for meaningful care.
Despite widespread use and demand, however, less than one per cent of global health research funding currently supports it, she added.
140 countries use traditional medicine, rely on WHO for guidance
Information available in WHO websites regarding traditional medicine said “88 per cent of all countries are estimated to use traditional medicine, such as herbal medicines, acupuncture, yoga, indigenous therapies and others.” It said some 140 Member States report the use of traditional medicine, and their priority request to WHO is for evidence and data to inform policies, standards and regulatory frameworks for safe, cost-effective and equitable use.”
WHO said traditional medicine has been an integral resource for health for centuries and it is still a mainstay for some with inequities in access to conventional medicine. Other observations are:
The sociocultural practice and biodiversity heritages of traditional medicine are invaluable resources to evolve inclusive, diverse sustainable development.
Traditional medicine is also part of the growing trillion-dollar global health, wellness, beauty, and pharmaceutical industries. Over 40 per cent of pharmaceutical formulations are based on natural products and landmark drugs, including aspirin and artemisinin, originated from traditional medicine.
The contribution of traditional medicine to national health systems is not yet fully realized, as millions of accredited traditional medicine workers, facilities, expenditures and products are not fully accounted for.
Augmenting WHO’s capacities to address these knowledge needs will be a main objective of WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre (GTMC).
India is hosting the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre – WHO said India has committed to invest US$250 million to establish the center which includes 35 acres of land in Jamnagar, Gujarat, a new building and support for operational costs with a 10-year commitment. WHO said the centre will be an “accessible, eco-friendly and interactive facility showcasing global traditions and modern scientific advances in traditional medicine. While the new Centre is being built, an interim office has been established at the Institute Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA), which is a WHO Collaborating Centre and Institute of National Importance.”
First summit held in August 2023 – The first summit convened by WHO to discuss traditional medicine took place in Gujarat, India, and focused on sharing evidence and best practices in the field of traditional medicine.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as reported by UN News at that time, said the medicine has made “enormous” contributions to human health and its understanding of the “intimate links” between health and the environment. Tedros said the summit helped to bring together “ancient wisdom and modern science for the health and well-being of people and planet”.
Read the first global summit: Traditional Medicine Summit
(By J. Tuyet Nguyen)
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