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• Doctors want integration of African traditional medicine into primary healthcare, curricula of schools
Nigerian scientists have unveiled how to develop and transfer technology in the country even as they called for the integration of African Traditional Medicine (ATM) or Traditional Medicine Practice (TMP) into Primary Health Care (PHC) services and curricula of schools from nursery to university level
The scientists at an inaugural workshop organized by Ofure (Pax) Integral Research and Development Initiative (OFIRDI), formerly known as Africa Centre for Integral Research and Development (ACIRD) tagged “Pax Africana” identified the challenges of technology development and transfer in Nigeria.
These they said include: Low funding of research and development activities in Nigeria; General apathy for made-in-Nigerians goods/technologies and high tastes of Nigerians for foreign goods including foreign technologies; Low level of awareness creation on the part of the research institutions; lack of technical and financial capacities by the research institutes to further develop the research findings into acceptable products in the market; and inadequate Information Communication Technology (ICT) infrastructures and low level of development of available ones for information dissemination. The theme of the workshop is Integral Research in Health, Education, Social Innovation and Law: Lessons From The Pax Herbals Project In Ewu. The scientists include: Director of Pax Africana/Pax Herbal Clinics, Rev Fr Anselm Adodo; Director General of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO) Lagos, Prof. Gloria Elemo; Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bioresources Development Group (BDG), Prof Maurice Iwu; former Chairman, Lagos State Traditional Medicine Council, Dr. Bunmi Omoseyindemi; Consultant physician at Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) Ikeja, Dr. Clara Dawodu; Director General of the Nigerian Natural Medicine Development Agency (NNMDA), Sam Oghene-Etatuvie; and former Head, Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics, University of Ibadan, Prof. David T. Okpako.
The scientists, however, recommended the way forward in developing technology in Nigeria. They said government should enact a policy to make it compulsory for government to purchase made-in-Nigeria goods especially MSMEs products; ban importation of some items that are produced by the local Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to protect the local industries; and legislate the use, by MSMEs, of appropriate technologies developed locally and specify sanctions for defaulters.
The scientists also want launch the compendium in all the 774 local government areas in Nigeria with active involvement of the organised private sector; government institutions, news media (both private and government) including radio, television and print media.
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