Conservation and Sustainable Use of Medicinal Plants

The project aims to facilitate development of safe and efficacious healthcare relying on traditional medicine and medicinal plants while protecting the resource base and implementing measures to reduce pressure on wild populations of rare and endemic species. Specifically it is aimed at resolving problems of habitat destruction, erosion of biodiversity, loss of traditional knowledge and practices, rural poverty and primary healthcare in the regional setting. The GEF component is focused on inventory of medicinal plants found in the Bale Mountains National Park, with studies of harvest, production, and degree of endangerment, development of community oriented management guidelines for sustainable harvest in appropriate zones of the park, development of cultivation trials and methodologies, training in environmental conservation both for Park staff and local communities; and education and mass awareness campaigns.