The role of medicinal plants in traditional health care delivery in Ghana cannot be overemphasized. More than 250 indigenous trees and plants with healing properties have been scientifically catalogued in Ghana. Unfortunately, the very foundation upon which the medicinal plant species and the traditional health care system survive is threatened by deforestation. The rate of deforestation has increased by 50% over the last ten years, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The current area of intact forest is now estimated at between 10.9 and 11.8% of the original cover and 6.9% of the country’s total area. Deforestation is changing the habitats of disease-carrying insects and creating conditions that may help to spread malaria, river blindness and other devastating illnesses. Moreover, since the majority of the rural poor in Ghana depends on traditional medicine for their health care needs, the present high rate of deforestation will have a detrimental effect on the heath care delivery system in the country. Important plant species will be lost to deforestation unless urgent measures are taken. This paper examines the impact of deforestation on medicinal plants in Ghana.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Research Problem, Objectives and Conceptual Framework
3. Materials and Methods
4. What is Traditional Medicine?
4.1 Herbal Medicine
4.2 Traditional Herbal Medicine
5. Relevance of Medicinal Plants in the World
5.1 Traditional Medicine in Developing Countries
6. International Trade in Medicinal Plants
7. Medicinal Plants Policy in Ghana
8. Medicinal Plants and Health Delivery in Ghana
8.1 Health Care Delivery in Rural Ghana
8.2 Medicinal Plants and Health Care in Ghana
8.3 Farming Medicinal Plants in Ghana
9. Challenges Facing Medicinal Plants and their Use in Ghana
9.1 Deforestation and Medicinal Plants in Ghana
9.1.1 Deforestation and Changing Habitats of Diseases in Ghana
9.2 Bushfires
9.3 Mining Activities
9.4 Poor Farming Practices
9.5 Over Exploitation of Medicinal Plants
10. Strategies for Conservation and Sustainable Use of Medicinal Plants in Ghana
10.1 Combating Bush Fires
10.2 Re-afforestation of Lands Degraded by Mining Activities
10.3 Effective Education on Sustainable Faming Practices
10.4 Promotion of Medicinal Plant Farming
10.6 Capacity Building for Medicinal Plant Framers
10.7 Improving Research and Documentation of Medicinal Plants
10.8 Specific Policies and Guidelines for Conservation of Medicinal Plants
11. Conclusion
12. Bibliography
Research Objectives and Focus Areas
This paper examines the critical role of medicinal plants within Ghana's healthcare system, analyzes the environmental and socio-economic factors driving plant depletion, and proposes strategies for their sustainable conservation and management.
- Analysis of the role of traditional medicine in Ghanaian healthcare delivery.
- Investigation into the impact of deforestation and human activities on medicinal plant biodiversity.
- Evaluation of medicinal plant farming as a strategy to mitigate extinction risks.
- Review of national policies regarding the integration and regulation of traditional medicine.
Excerpt from the Book
9.1.1 Deforestation and Changing Habitats of Diseases in Ghana
Emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases have received increasing attention since the end of the 20th century. The World Health Organisation (1996) reported that since 1975, over thirty new or emergent human infections have evolved. The impact of deforestation in Ghana is seriously jeopardizing the future of the country’s health (Trade and Environment Database, 1995). Worms that cause river blindness or onchocercosis, are transmitted mostly by cytoforms of a blackfly (Simulium damnosum) found in savanna regions. These cytoforms are beginning to spread into areas of cleared forest in Ghana. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO, 2001), the rate of deforestation has increased by 50% over the last ten years. Ghana has started feeling the pain of the environmental imbalance in the country due to deforestation. Deforestation is threatening medicinal plants and traditional health care systems in Ghana. It is also changing the habitats of disease-carrying insects and creating conditions that may help to spread malaria, river blindness and other devastating illnesses. Most of the new diseases seem to be present in the environment and are being brought out of obscurity through deforestation (WHO, 1996). Altering landscapes can change the transmission dynamics and location of many serious infectious diseases.
Various studies (Walsh et al., 1993; Matola et al., 1987) indicate that climate variability is expected to influence malaria transmission. Environmental changes caused by deforestation affect local microclimatic conditions in a way that favours malaria transmission (Walsh et al., 1993). Matola et al. (1987) also noted that deforestation in the Usambara Mountains of Tanzania was responsible for the observed increases in local malaria transmission at high altitudes. A study in Kenya (Afrane et al., 2006) also indicate that vectorial capacity of mosquito was estimated to be twice higher in deforested areas than in the forested areas in the dry season and 29% higher in the rainy season in the highland.
Chapter Summaries
1. Introduction: Outlines the historical and global significance of medicinal plants as an essential component of primary healthcare, particularly in developing countries.
2. Research Problem, Objectives and Conceptual Framework: Describes the threat of extinction facing medicinal plant species in Ghana and sets the research goals of the paper.
3. Materials and Methods: Explains that the study relies on a critical literature review and qualitative data from interviews with various stakeholders in Ghana.
4. What is Traditional Medicine?: Defines traditional medicine and its various forms, including herbal medicine and botanical treatments, within a global and cultural context.
5. Relevance of Medicinal Plants in the World: Discusses the global importance of medicinal plants in both traditional and modern pharmaceutical systems.
6. International Trade in Medicinal Plants: Reviews the global economic market for medicinal plants and the challenges in tracking trade data.
7. Medicinal Plants Policy in Ghana: Analyzes the Ghanaian national drug policy and its goal to integrate traditional and conventional health systems.
8. Medicinal Plants and Health Delivery in Ghana: Details how rural and urban populations in Ghana depend on these plants for everyday healthcare needs.
9. Challenges Facing Medicinal Plants and their Use in Ghana: Identifies primary threats to biodiversity, including deforestation, bushfires, and unsustainable mining and farming practices.
10. Strategies for Conservation and Sustainable Use of Medicinal Plants in Ghana: Proposes actionable conservation measures such as reforestation, capacity building for farmers, and specific policy guidelines.
11. Conclusion: Summarizes the urgent need for government intervention and public awareness to prevent the collapse of traditional health systems due to environmental degradation.
Keywords
allopathic medicine, conservation, deforestation, diseases, domestication, endangered species, forests, health, medicinal plants, traditional, herbal medicine, biodiversity, sustainability, Ghana, healthcare delivery
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this publication?
The publication focuses on the critical role of medicinal plants in Ghana's healthcare system and the severe environmental challenges that threaten their availability and future use.
What are the primary themes discussed in the paper?
The central themes include the dependency of the rural poor on traditional medicine, the impact of deforestation on plant biodiversity, and strategies for sustainable domestication and conservation.
What is the main research objective of this study?
The objective is to examine the role of medicinal plants in Ghanaian healthcare, identify the causes of their depletion, and suggest policy and practical measures for their conservation.
Which scientific methodology was employed?
The study utilizes a combination of critical literature reviews and data collected through semi-structured interviews with experts, health professionals, farmers, and traditional healers.
What does the main body of the text cover?
It covers the definition of traditional medicine, global trade trends, the specific policy environment in Ghana, and a detailed look at the threats to plant habitats versus conservation initiatives.
Which keywords best characterize this work?
Key terms include medicinal plants, deforestation, traditional medicine, conservation, biodiversity, Ghana, healthcare systems, and sustainable farming.
How does deforestation affect disease transmission in Ghana?
The text explains that deforestation alters landscapes and microclimates, which creates favorable habitats for disease-carrying insects such as mosquitoes and blackflies, potentially spreading malaria and river blindness.
Why is the cultivation of medicinal plants considered essential?
Due to over-exploitation and the destruction of wild plant habitats, domestication and farming are identified as necessary interventions to ensure the continued availability of these vital resources.
- Quote paper
- Prof. Dr. Emmanuel Boon (Author), Albert Ahenkan (Author), 2008, Impact of deforestation on medicinal plants in Ghana, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/90577
