Rewatch the event
Conversation on traditional medicine continued this year at the World Health Summit (WHS) 2026 in Berlin. This marked the third event at the WHS since 2025, in which a dedicated session explored the challenges and opportunities of traditional medicine in advancing global health goals.
The panel, moderated by Dr Hiba Boujnah, Head of the WHO Collaborating Centre at the Charité Competence Center for Traditional and Integrative Medicine (CCCTIM), reflected on the question, what can traditional medicine contribute to building more resilient health systems?
Dr Mustapha Ferjani, Minister of Health of Tunisia, opened the event, signaling a strong political commitment. He highlighted his country's commitment to the integration of traditional medicine with wider health systems to achieve resilient, fit-for-purpose, and accessible-for-all health-care system. He underscored the need to combine respect for traditional knowledge with rigorous scientific evaluation, quality assurance and patient safety, linking to biodiversity protection, One Health approaches and digital health transformation and the responsible use of artificial intelligence.
Dr Shyama Kuruvilla, Director a.i. of the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine, further enlarged the discussion of resilience by building the capacity of people, communities, systems and the environment to attain, restore and sustain balance. She highlighted the need for country-led, evidence-informed approaches that place equity, trust and sustainability at the centre of health policy, and outlined WHO's emerging Living Well initiative as a platform for connecting traditional knowledge, science, innovation and international cooperation in support of healthier and more resilient societies.
Vivian Camacho, an Indigenous health leader from Bolivia, added that health, as a human right, remains closely linked to cultural identity, community values and harmony with nature. Drawing on the Indigenous concept of Sumaq Kawsay (living well), she shared Bolivia's experience in recognizing traditional healers and integrating ancestral medicine into the national health system. For example, she highlighted Indigenous-led responses during the COVID-19 pandemic that combined public health messaging with traditional healing practices to support the health of the mind, body and spirit.
Dr Sohel Saikat, WHO Senior Advisor on Primary Health Care, echoed Ms Camacho's perspective and argued that traditional medicine has the potential to strengthen essential public health functions, extending the reach of health services by strengthening trust, cultural legitimacy and community engagement.
For example, Dr Saikat highlighted the role of traditional practitioners in health promotion, prevention, risk communication, early detection and referral, and called for formal two-way referral and learning systems between traditional practitioners and primary health care providers to strengthen prevention, surveillance and health system resilience.
Researcher Amie Steel from Southern Cross University highlighted growing evidence that traditional medicine practitioners already play an important role in preventive health by supporting behaviour change, health literacy and healthy lifestyles. She described these practitioners as an under-recognized public health resource and called for stronger evidence, greater investment and more inclusive research ecosystems that bring together researchers, practitioners, traditional knowledge holders, Indigenous healers and communities as equal partners in generating evidence and informing policy.
Throughout the discussion, a common theme emerged: resilient health systems depend not only on services and technologies, but also on trust, culture, community participation and respect for diverse knowledge systems. Speakers stressed that traditional medicine can make meaningful contributions to prevention, primary health care, mental well-being and community resilience when supported by robust evidence, effective regulation and respectful collaboration across sectors.
The session concluded with a clear call to move from recognizing traditional medicine as valuable in and of itself, to integrating it fully within national health-care systems. Participants agreed this will depend on strengthening evidence, fostering innovation, protecting Indigenous knowledge, promoting equity and building effective partnerships between traditional, public health and biomedical systems. Together, these efforts can help countries develop more inclusive, adaptive and resilient health systems capable of addressing current and future health challenges.
