More than 80 percent of total population of the world is using herbal medicines whereas 425 million people have been visiting ethno-practitioners globally.
This was stated by Professor Iqrar Ahmad Khan, Vice Chancellor UAF while addressing the concluding session of one day workshop on "Role of Medicinal Plants in Poverty Alleviation" jointly organised by Institute of Horticultural Sciences UAF and HEC Islamabad at New Senate Hall here on Tuesday.
Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan stressed the need for cultivation of high value herbs in order to maintain our traditional heritage of medicinal plants. He said that means and ways of cultivation have been changed and farming practices are under highly economic pressures. He urged the industrialists to come forward and update herbal industry on scientific base. He assured the ethno-practitioners that UAF would initiate a mechanism of medicinal plant database in order to preserve our precious herbal asset.
CEO Punjab Agricultural Research Board, Dr Mubarak Ali the chief guest of inaugural ceremony of the workshop said that multi purpose medicinal plants remain a cruel element of human and livestock health care system all over the World. He added that industrialised countries also use medicinal plants, as many pharmaceuticals are based on or derived from plants compounds. He maintained that 25 percent of total medicines obtained from herbal plants where as 60 percent approved medicines or derived from medicinal plants.
Professor Iftikhar Ahmad Khan, Dean Faculty of Agriculture said that in Pakistan more than 100 billion rupees are being spent annually on medicines and 80 percent of total volume of these medicines are imported. Dr Muhammad Aslam Pervez, Director IHS UAF said that in light of the current health challenges, the potential of indigenous medicinal plants need to be exploited.
Dr Aman Ullah Malik, Chief organiser of the workshop said that besides the indisputable health benefits, traditional medicinal offer a huge potential for trade promotion, job creation and poverty alleviation. He added that the out put of traditional medicine will also have to be gauged against how well they ghost the economic activity amongst our community.
Dr Muhammad M Aslam Gill, Commissioner Minor Crops MINFAL Islamabad, Dr Zahid Ashraf, Professor Zafar Iqbal Randhawa, Chairman Department of Vet. Parasitology UAF, Dr Babar Ehsan Bajwah, Manager Technical PHDEB and Dr Shahid Masood from NARC presented their research papers on this occasion. An exhibition of various herbal medicine companies was also organised. Chief guest Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan presented memento's and Certificates to the Participants and distinguished guest from various parts of the country.