20 countries to participate at 2nd WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine

A dedicated event on ‘Ashwagandha’, one of India’s herbal medicinal plants, will be conducted at the second World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Summit on Traditional Medicine that will be held from December 17 to 19.

Co-hosted by the Ministry of Ayush and the WHO, the summit will focus on scientific validation, digital health, biodiversity protection and global collaboration in traditional medicine. Officials said health ministers and vice-ministers from over 20 countries, including Nepal, Maldives, Sri Lanka, the UAE and Ghana would participate in person, while 5,000 participants from 100 countries would attend it virtually.

Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, said export of Ashwagandha had grown exponentially.

“An event titled ‘Ashwagandha: From Traditional Wisdom to Global Impact’ has been scheduled. It will bring together leading researchers and policymakers to deepen scientific understanding of Ashwagandha,” he said.

“Discussions will highlight contemporary evidence on its adaptogenic, neuroprotective and immunomodulatory properties, alongside insights from traditional knowledge. With an emphasis on safety assessments, the session aims to further advance global acceptance of high-quality, evidence-based Ashwagandha products,” added Kotecha.

According to PubMed database, the number of studies on Ashwagandha has risen from 95 in 2019 to 201 in 2024.

Union Minister of State for Ayush Prataprao Jadhav said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus would address the closing ceremony of the summit.

He added that the establishment of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre in Jamnagar reflects growing global confidence in India’s traditional knowledge systems.

Dr Poonam Khetrapal, Regional Director Emeritus, WHO South-East Asia Region, said the summit would help shape a decade-long roadmap for the evidence-based, equitable and sustainable integration of traditional and indigenous medicine into national health systems.

Highlighting the global reliance on traditional medicine, she stressed the need to bridge evidence gaps through research, innovation and regulatory strengthening.