**1. Introduction**

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) that caused pandemic started in December 2019 in Wuhan, China [1–3]. The novel coronavirus responsible for this respiratory disease was identified to be the member of the Coronaviridae family known to cause infections in humans called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) [1]. SARS-CoV-2 is reported to be found in bats, and the infections occurred in humans because of the intermediate host, the pangolin [2]. SARS-CoV-2 is the third coronavirus reported to cause the respiratory disease pandemic after severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) [2]. COVID-19 disease

spreads from human to human by respiratory droplets [4], and the symptoms include dry cough, fever, fatigue, body aches, dyspnea, chills and shivering, sputum production, diarrhea, nausea, nasal congestion, rhinorrhea, and loss of speech or movement [3, 5–7]. To date, COVID-19 is still the cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, accounting to 409 confirmed positive cases and 5.8 million deaths between 7 and 13 February 2022 [8]. Among the African countries, South Africa (SA) reported the highest numbers of new mortality between 7 and 13 February 2022 [8].

Vaccines were quickly developed for the prevention of COVID-19 pandemic [9], but there is no specific treatment available [4] as vaccinated individuals can still contact and transmit the COVID-19 virus. COVID-19 symptom management is mainly supported with oxygen therapy, steroids, antivirals, antibiotics, and antiinflammatory agents, including chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine [5, 6]. However, antibiotics, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory drugs are reported to be the cause of health problems due to their toxicities [6]. Africa has a long historic record on the use of traditional medicinal plants (TMPs), and phytomedicine is preferred as 80–90% of rural population rely on medicinal plants for primary healthcare [10]. Fortunately, the World Health Organization (WHO) promotes the use of traditional, complementary, and alternative medicine on condition that their efficacy, safety, and quality are scientifically reported [1, 11]. Therefore, considering the potential of TMPs as alternative and complementary conventional drugs for COVID-19 management is an important research topic during the current situation of COVID-19 pandemic [12]. Several studies were conducted on TMPs and their pharmacological activities against COVID-19 [10, 13–15], and this review is, therefore, aimed at the documentation of TMPs that can be used in adjuvant, prophylactic, and management therapy of COVID-19.
