Policy
- There is presently no national policy, law or regulation for T/CM.
- In 2002, an expert committee was established and it is expected that work on planning policy will begin with that group.
- The Afghanistan National Development Strategy for Health and Nutrition sector (2007/08 until 2011/12) stated that under the Pharmaceutical Management Support Program, one of the new strategic directions is to assess the local use of herbal and traditional medicine and quality of assurance to ensure regular and appropriate distribution of safe, effective, cheap, and acceptable medical drugs to the population.
- The Strategic Plan for the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) 2011-15 has been developed through a highly participatory process and 10 Strategic Directions was emerged on December 2010 including to create an enabling environment for the production and availability of quality pharmaceuticals.
Laws and Regulations
- Afghanistan does not regulate herbal medicines.
- Herbal medicines are sold with claim; however, there is no information regarding the types of claims that may be made by law.
- Neither a national pharmacopoeia nor national herbal monographs exist, and there are currently none in development.
- Botanical products are manufactured under the same GMP requirements as those that regulate production of pharmaceuticals.
- However, there are no control measures in place that oversee either the production or safety.
- Herbs may be sold with claims and there are essentially no restrictions on the sale of herbal products.
- There is a post-market surveillance program in the planning stages.
Standards and Guidelines
- Currently, Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health (MoPH), in collaboration with USAID’s Strengthening Pharmaceutical Systems (SPS) program, the World Health Organization (WHO), and Kabul Medical University, is developing the Standard Treatment Guidelines (STG) for the Basic Package of Health Services.
- These evidence-based recommendations and guidance are meant for physicians, midwives, pharmacists, and community health workers.
- There are guidelines in reproductive health, family planning, and safe motherhood, such as prenatal, and post-natal in Afghanistan, which mention the roles of traditional birth attendants.
- The Afghan Herbal Medicines for Addiction and Depression (AHMAD) is one of the projects that conduct clinical trials in the U.S. and Afghanistan in order to validate Afghanistan’s high-potential medicinal and aromatic plants (MAP) for the treatment of addiction and depression.
- The project benefits Afghanistan’s MAP sector, which provides jobs to women and forms alternative livelihoods to the opium economy.
- The National Medicine and Health Products Regulatory Authority (NMHRA) was created by the government in 2016 and is in charge of policing pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, vaccines, diagnostics, and other health products.
- The NMHRA is striving to improve the quality and procedures of medical regulation.
Reference
- Afghanistan. (n.d.). Essential medicines and pharmaceutical policies. World Health Organization – Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean. Available at: https://www.emro.who.int/afg/programmes/emp.html
Contact
Ministry of Public Health
Address: Massoud Square Sehat-e-Ama Square,
Wazir Akbar Khan RoadKabul, Afghanistan
Tel.: 0093202301374
Email: [email protected]
Website: moph.gov.af/en
United States Agency for International Dvelopment (USAID)
Address: Information Center
U.S. Agency for International Development
Ronald Reagan Building
Washington, D.C. 20523-1000
Tel.: (202) 712-4810
Fax: (202) 216-3524
Website: usaid.gov
