By A Staff Reporter,,Kathmandu, August 1: The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Forum on Traditional Medicine, held in Nanchang, capital of east China’s Jiangxi province recently, recognised the positive role of traditional medicine in fighting against COVID-19 and its excellent support for protecting people's health and building a shared community of health for mankind.

“The SCO countries are dedicated to promoting extensive inter-governmental and people-to-people exchanges in education, medical treatment, research, and medicinal material resources of traditional medicine,” stated a press statement issued by the Forum.

Nepal is the dialogue partner of the SCO, which is the world’s largest regional organisation. 

The Forum that adopted ‘Nanchang Initiative on SCO Traditional Medicine Cooperation’ had the theme of “Inheritance, Innovation, Mutual Learning, and Sharing.” The event marked the 20^th anniversary of the establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). About 500 guests from China and SCO member states attended the event online and offline.

The Initiative states that, traditional medicine refers to a variety of knowledge, skills, and practices based on theories, beliefs, and experiences specific to different cultures to maintain health, prevent, diagnose, improve, or treat both physical and mental diseases.

“The heritage, innovation, and development of traditional medicine are of practical significance to the healthy development of the domestic medical and health system. Countries are committed to protecting traditional medicine culture and resources, promoting its closer integration with modern medicine, in order for traditional medicine to play a more prominent role and contribute more to the global health governance,” stated the Initiative.

It said that countries would actively conduct researches on the prevention, diagnosis, improvement, or treatment of both physical and mental diseases with traditional medicine to achieve safe and effective use of traditional medicine. “We will jointly explore how to handle common health challenges, including chronic diseases, new or recurrent infectious diseases, or cross-border public health emergencies with traditional medicine.”

The SCO members, observers and dialogue partners agreed to boost education and training on traditional medicine, enhance its market promotion, and strengthen exchanges between traditional medicine providers to encourage mutual learning and enhance the overall capacity building.

The SCO countries will actively exchange and cooperate on medicinal plants-based traditional medicine to establish a multi-subject, multi-level, multi-form, and multi-angle cooperation framework; and proactively develop trade-in-service to facilitate the overall development of traditional medicine, according to the statement.