Mauritania: The country wants to better regulate its medicinal practices

In Mauritania, traditional medicine is entering a phase of structuring. The country wants to better regulate practices, document medicinal knowledge, and strengthen research on plants used for generations.

Approximately 240 species of medicinal plants have already been identified in the region. However, their use remains largely based on knowledge passed down through generations, with little data available to systematically assess their quality, safety, and efficacy.

The authorities are therefore working on a roadmap for the period 2027-2037. It should in particular make it possible to better identify traditional healers, preserve existing knowledge and develop research on traditional remedies.

The challenge also lies in developing products that can be evaluated and, when conditions allow, integrated into the national health system. Mauritania is thus seeking to transform its long-standing therapeutic heritage into a better organized, documented, and regulated sector.

Yolande Bazié