THE PRACTICE AND CHALLENGES OF TRADITIONAL MEDICINE IN MAKURDI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF BENUE STATE, 1960 – 2020

Abstract

This paper examines the practice and challenges of traditional medicine in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State, 1960 – 2020. It conceptualizes traditional medicine and traditional medical practitioners. The call, training, and initiation, as well as forms of traditional medical practitioners in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State, 1960 – 2020 also came into focus. It analyzes the roles of traditional medical practitioners in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State, 1960 – 2020. It also examines the challenges of traditional medicine and its practice in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State, 1960 – 2020. The study relied on both primary sources like oral interviews and archival materials and secondary sources like books, theses, articles, newspapers, journals, etc. The study finds out that traditional medicine is part and parcel of the health care system in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State, 1960 – 2020. The study demonstrates that traditional medicine is an important component of the health sector in Makurdi Local Government Area as it provides an alternative to modern medicine in the area and doubles as a veritable tool for revenue generation and employment creation. The study concludes, among other things, that the solutions to the challenges confronting traditional medicines and traditional medical practitioners in the area lie in the provision of incentives, the elimination of quackery, and positive government policies to confront these challenges faced by traditional medicines and traditional medical practitioners in Makurdi Local Government Area of Benue State.

Keywords

• Challenges
• Makurdi
• Medicine
• Practice
• Traditional