At present, more than 700 species of medicinal plants are reported in this region. Of these around 50 species are commercially farmed in Nepal; even though 121 medicinal plant species belonging to 92 genera are anecdotally used for medicine. These 121 species treat 116 different ailments. Of the reported medicinal plants, the most common was herbs (73 percent) followed by shrubs, trees, and climbers. Out of the 30 prioritized medicinal plants selected for commercial purpose, 15 grow naturally in the Himalayas.
The threats to these medicinal plants in Nepal are many, but deforestation is the main threat. The over-harvesting and unscientific exploitation of these medicinal plants to meet increasing global trade is threatening biodiversity of the region and many species are now endangered. The medicinal plant species are also destroyed, directly or indirectly, because of other human activities such as fragmentation and degradation of land, population and urbanization pressure, overgrazing of domestic animals in forests and ignorance. Natural calamities like floods, landslides, drought, and fire are also responsible.
Over 45 species are reported to be endangered in Nepal due to people's ignorance and wrong practices. For example, Yarsagumba (Ophiocordyceps sinensis), a rare and unique fungus that only grows in meadows above 3,500–5,000 meters (11,500–16,500 feet) in the northern Himalayas, has been overharvested. If this trend continues and sustainable harvesting is not introduced, it could disappear in a decade. In addition, overharvesting will also jeopardize the ecosystem of this vulnerable region. Harvested properly, while protecting the environment, the Himalayan communities will benefit from medicinal plants for years.
There are many challenges in sustainable development of medicinal plants. There is no institution to impart training on cultivation techniques. Training on post-harvest and value additions are also lacking. To address these issues, there should be more collaboration amongst institutions like Nepal Agricultural Research Council and Agriculture and Forestry University. Research on development of cultivation techniques should start as soon as possible. At the same time, there should be a program to promote cultivation of high value medicinal plants as alternative cash crops among local communities.
Dearth of knowledge on ethno-botany has also hindered conservation strategies of medicinal plants, traditional knowledge and practices. Thus ethno-botanic centers in high mountain regions have become important. Further, collection, processing and preservation of plants are carried out in unscientific manner. Scarcity of information is also hindering assessment of their availability.
Medicinal plants are renewable natural resources and their cultivation and sustainable utilization should, therefore, involve long term scientific approaches. What we need is concerted effort to assess, collect, evaluate, cultivate, process and utilize these plants.
In order to bridge the lab-to-land gap, regular training and field demonstrations should be conducted for farmers and continual technical assistance provided on propagation, orchard establishment, cultivation, and pest management. For this, we will need nurseries and greenhouses—for production of high quality plants and their distribution to farmers.
However, the best course of action would be to ensure that these plants continue to grow in the wild or in their natural habitat. That is why community stewardship for protection of medicinal plants in the wild is needed. In this context, involvement of local communities and stakeholders will be crucial.
Over-harvested medicinal plants in their natural habitats can be protected with collaborative research of local indigenous people and national and international partners. Moreover, there should be a program for educating traditional healers and other holders of ethno-botanical knowledge on emerging issues such as intellectual property rights and benefit-sharing measures as well as quality control and certification of medicinal plant materials.
The value chain of Himalayan medicinal plants are either incomplete or totally absent. In fact, the broken value chains can be completed only when we know destination points, majority of which are outside the country. In this context, we need to establish regional value chains among South Asian countries. Creation of linkages with marketing agencies and industries for assurance of buy-back is also essential.
bhairabr@gmail.com
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