"The global market for herbal medicines is expected to reach US 107 billion dollars by the year 2018 and US 115 billion dollars by 2020, creating a vast room for Pakistani herbal medicines." Former president of Pak-China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) Shah Faisal Afridi stated this at a meeting with the PCJCCI President Wang Zihai while the chamber's Vice President Moazzam Ali Ghurki was also present on the occasion.
He said that almost 30,000 herbal drugs, cosmetic and healthcare production companies are at present operating in Pakistan and to empower this sector government should set up a specialized herbal research institution to develop the industry and educate the health regulators in the country.
The amalgamation of Pakistani and Chinese herbal medicines, techniques and procedures would revolutionize the arena of the herbal curative system and treatments besides capturing a handsome share in the international market for herbal medicines, he added. Faisal Afridi said the herbal and plant medicine is a billion-dollar industry and the world is gradually moving towards organic and herbal medicine. Therefore, the industry provides Pakistan with an opportunity to market its miraculous herbal medicines around the world, he said. China is pioneer in the world of herbal treatments based on research of more than 2,500 years while Pakistan in its Himalayan range is enriched with naturally growing herbs that are of high value in pharmaceutical industries. Their proper utilization could lead to socio-economic development of the individuals and the country, he added.
Following the Pak-China cooperation in the economic and military sectors, both the brotherly nations should also collaborate in the area of traditional medicine and conventional medicine experts so that they could learn from the experience of each other to benefit millions of people in both the countries, who could not afford costly treatment at the prevailing modern system of health, he said.
Wang Zihai highly appreciated the idea of Shah Faisal Afridi and said that the deepening collaboration between the two countries over the years and particularly the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has brought the two countries closer, "We will endeavor to benefit from the tremendous opportunities it has opened up in diverse fields", he added.
Wang Zihai said the Sichuan province of China has one of the largest manufacturing bases of traditional Chinese medicines. He informed that there were 1,800 hospitals and 78,000 clinics in the province whereas over 5,000 species of herbs were being used to develop traditional Chinese medicines in the province.
He assured to send a proposal in this regard to the relevant department of Sichuan province and will invite possibilities of joint ventures in this field of immense potential. He further said, "We have to create a link between the herbal research centers, the teaching institutes, universities, researchers, academics and experts that will ultimately aid the exchange of information required for the capacity building of Pakistan in the herbal sector".
"The exchange of knowledge and information will be followed by the setting up of a mutual department of herbal and traditional medicine through which common masses will be able to get advanced herbal treatment," Wang maintained. Speaking on the occasion, PCJCCI Vice President Moazzam Ali Ghurki hoped that this process would create a new dimension in business productivity and development of innovative herbal products and cures.
It is notable that the Chinese, Indian, European and USA represent the largest markets that have created consumer confidence in the efficacy and safety of herbal medicaments. The pharmaceutical and herbal industry in Pakistan needs to share the market value in this fertile area of phytopharmaceuticals manufacturing for their growth, he said.
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