Spanish
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced this Thursday the launch next December of the most complete digital archive on traditional, complementary and integrative medicine, as part of its campaign to promote this knowledge.
The Global Library of Traditional Medicine (GLTM) will be presented at the upcoming Traditional Medicine Summit in New Delhi, hosted by the WHO itself, according to a statement from the United Nations health agency.
WHO reminds that 170 of its 194 member states have reported on the presence in their countries of some form of traditional medicine, but that these practices "have often been underrepresented in scientific and policy discussions".
The effort aligns with the WHO's Global Strategy for Traditional Medicine launched for the decade 2025–2034 with the goal of "fostering a solid evidence base on traditional medicine" which also ensures "respect for indigenous knowledge systems".
In the first half of 2025, this platform has already integrated more than 1.5 million records including magazines, multimedia collections, or regulations. One of the first parts already developed covers the traditional practices of childbirth assistance in America, in which the Government of Canada and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) have collaborated, and which includes testimonies from indigenous and Afro-descendant midwives from all over Latin America.
