BARINGO, Kenya- The catastrophic effects of climate change, which are already evident in most parts of the country, are now believed to be affecting biodiversity and endangering the advancement of traditional medicine.
Herbal medicine specialists claim that climate change can have a complex effect on human and animal health.
It can change the environment, attracting pathogens and zoonotic disease vectors and creating new difficulties in preserving human and animal health.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) seeks to improve health and save lives by guaranteeing all medications’ safety, effectiveness, and appropriate use, including complementary and alternative therapies.
This publication also understands that WHO promotes fair and long-term access to necessary medications, especially for the underprivileged and impoverished.
According to Jonathan Kiplagat, secretary-general of the Baringo County Herbalists Association, the catastrophic impacts of climate change have significantly influenced their operations.
“For example, some trees are drying up in some locations where we used to collect our herbal medicine because of the rising temperatures. As a result, the trees that previously benefited from the cold are now naturally withering,” Kiplagat explained.
Kiplagat claims that trees were growing along riverbanks in some locations, but the trees were washed away when water levels rose.
“We have been impacted and are now requesting assistance from the government and other pertinent authorities in the form of funding and advice. Before we lose all of the trees that give us herbal medicine, we need to become more aware of how to properly adapt to this climate change,” said Kiplagat.
Speaking at the Kamgoin Conservancy in Kabarnet, Baringo county, naturalist, herbalist, and trail guide Esther Chepkurui revealed that although she is still young, she brings the medication from the forest (s).
“However, last year’s severe drought caused the vegetation, especially the herbal trees, to wither. This is an example of how warming temperatures are causing problems. If I were to take you into the forests right now, you would see that we have lost some of the tree species we once relied on to gather these herbal remedies,” she said.
Chepkurui says herbalists only administer medication one dose at a time since they require diversity.
Susan Jepkemoi, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Baringo Community Conservancies Association (BCCA), said the organisation, which is an umbrella organisation for community conservancies in Baringo county, is keen to work with all conservancies to conserve and sustainably utilise indigenous plants.
“From time immemorial, our communities have kept indigenous knowledge, which is transferred from generation to generation. These communities are trying to develop associations and documents so we don’t lose indigenous knowledge. So, the conservancy model is handy to further their efforts in conserving and making sure this rich diversity of plants in Baringo flourishes, helps improve the health of our people, and also helps generate income,” Jepkemoi explained.
Jepkemoi did note, however, that traditional medicine—which provides a living for many herbalists in the county—has recently faced significant challenges due to climate change.
“In our communities, climate change is becoming an issue that, in my opinion, even outweighs the local measures they have been using to preserve these native plants,” Jepkemoi stated.
She disclosed that the sustainable exploitation of plants has long been one of the methods employed by indigenous communities.
“However, native plants are in danger due to commercialisation by the herbal industry. The speaker clarified that climate change is one of the major obstacles speeding up a potential reversal of these natural resources inside our vegetation,” Jepkemoi added.
Meanwhile, Kiplagat, who doubles as a member of the Herbalists Society of Kenya, disclosed that they are working with owners of tree nurseries by providing them with tree seedlings and planting the trees on their farms so that we don’t run out of herbal trees.
“There is no doubt that herbal medicine is helping many people. I have practised for 15 years. I harvested herbal medicine from more than 200 species of trees. We have sensitised our people to embrace herbal medicine,” Kiplagat added.
On the other hand, Jepkemoi said that BCCA was encouraging conservancies to identify critical tree species that are endangered and endemic to the area to be protected for more sustainable use.
“So far, we are happy that the Endorois community has developed a bio-cultural protocol to ensure good access and equitable, accessible utilisation of these natural resources within their area. We are promoting that even within the Pokot and Tugen culture so that we can have protocols that protect them from exploitation of natural resources,” Jepkemoi explained.
She also encouraged the local communities to develop tree nurseries and harvest seeds from the indigenous trees.
“With the 15 billion trees that the government is promoting, I think conservancies stand a high opportunity to be able to venture into the tree nursery business, seed collection and storage, and selling as an enterprise that they can use to also continue maintaining their species and creating income,” she said.
Jepkemoi also admitted that in Baringo, tree species are almost becoming extinct.
“One is the African Oak and the Sandal Wood, prevalent many years ago. It is becoming extinct because no tree nursery propagates the particular species. Also, it isn’t easy to get the seeds. So that makes it hard for us to sustain its growth,” she said.
However, Jepkemoi reiterated that it is very important to sensitise the local communities to those species with medicinal value that cannot be replaced.
“With the emergence of many complicated diseases in the world, pharmaceutical companies from developed countries are now coming back to Africa to be able to engage communities or land owners to see avenues in which they can utilise this indigenous knowledge and indigenous trees in developing molecules that can help advance the pharmaceutical industry and develop new drugs that can help cope up with the emerging diseases,” said Jepkemoi.
Recently, Jepkemoi revealed that as BCCA, they were approached by one of the pharmaceutical companies.
“And one thing we were able to share is that communities are now organised into community-based organisations that require very high-level kind of engagement, and any interested industry or company needs to present its case to communities, and it’s up to the communities to either agree or disagree to their terms,” said Jepkemoi.
One thing that BCCA encourages communities is that any company that wants to do business with the local communities should prioritise free, informed consent and be able to clearly outline their interests within the community.
She said the community must be given the first say to agree or disagree with the terms.
This is happening even as this publication establishes how conventional medicine is being impacted by climate change due to the loss of biodiversity.
Climate variability and diminishing soil quality impact the performance of extinct animal and plant species and the quality of chemical concentrates.
These factors determine the quality of pharmaceuticals. Climate change can also impact the chemical makeup of medicinal plants.
Variations in temperature and moisture can affect the concentration of active chemicals in plants, impacting their safety and efficacy.
