**2.3 Traditional medicine in South Africa**

Traditional Medicine is a part of everyone life in South Africa. Wide variety of concepts and beleifs existed in south african traditional healing system. The herbalism plays an important role in the traditional healing, The combined herbs use in traditional medicine is known as muti and the market where these herbs will sold is known as muti-market. Herbs, animals, mineral drugs will be available in this market. Eleven herbs are very important in muti market and plays a crucial role in isicakathi (Herbalism) and they are as follows


#### **2.4 Other parts of Africa**

Eritrea is one of African country and has been known for its traditional medicine practice. They use different plants for different diseases. In Eritrea plant called *Kalanchoe marmorata* baker and belongs to the family of Crassulaceae. In local name it is known as Saniaco which has been using for Cold, Intestinal parasites & Burns. some of the important herbs that have been using in Eriterea are mentioned in the [60].

The folks of Uganda as other Africa countries have rich in traditional health care knowledge for addressing various health problems and 80% people uses medicinal herbs atleast once in daily life. For instances in northern sector of kibale national park, the folks have been using *Vernonia amygdalina* Del. (Asteraceae) and Albizia coriaria. Welw. ex Oliv (Fabaceae) in the treatment of malaria and cough respectively. Some other common medicinal plants that have been using *Coffea arabica* Linn (Rubiaceae), *Coffea canephora* Pierre ex A.Froehner (Rubiaceae) for treatingdiarrhoea, *Crassocephalum vitellinum* S.Moore (Rubiaceae) in treating wound, Turraea africana (Welw.) Cheek (Meliaceae) for worm infestations [60]. In Zambia, 75% of people depend on traditional medicinal knowledge to treat various ailments like infertility, wound healing. The famous plant used in zambian societies are *Aloe vera Linn (Aloeaceae)* as an antiseptic, wound healing, antitussive, skin irritant. Various herbs like *Terminalia sericea* Burch. ex DC. (Combretaceae), Strychnos cocculoides Baker. (Strychnaceae), *Ximenia caffra* Sond.(Olacaceae), *Cassia abbreviata* oliv. (Fabaceae), *Combretum hereroense* Schinz. (Combretaceae), *Combretum imberbe* Wawra. (Combretaceae), *Dichrostachys cinerea* Linn. (Fabaceae), *Boscia foetida* Schinz. (Capparaceae), *Momordica balsamina* Linn. (Cucurbitaceae) and *Peltophorum africanum* Sond (Fabaceae) [61].

## **3. Conclusion**

In Africa, Traditional medicine is one of the important health care system till today. The traditional african medicine is now evolved as an evidence based healing system and serving as a good prime element in reverse pharmacology and drug discovery. Hence Traditional african medicine is a break through in the drug discovery process.

Even now a days, serious attention has been made on the quality, Safety, and efficacy from the evolved african countries like South Africa, Ethiopia, Ghana, and kenya and there is a paradigm shift from non- validated traditional herbalism to validated modern herbalism which is even accepting by the modern doctors about the magical healing effects of these herbs in diseases like cancer, Covid-19, HIV, and tuberculosis. The current demand for African traditional healing concepts like spiritualism, humanisim, and herbalism towards the disease preventive care and African herbalism has been became an important bioprospecting tool in drug discovery of new drug molecules.


## *Traditional African Medicine DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.96576*

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**Table 1.**

*Some common medicinal plant used in different parts of Africa.*
