Manto wants healers recognised

2004-03-30 13:35

Johannesburg - The status and profile of traditional healers should be raised for the benefit of all South Africans, Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang said at a Traditional Healers Conference in Benoni on Tuesday.

"It is unfortunate that we often lose sight of the continuing service that has been offered by this sector which remains largely informal and marginalised in most parts of the world," she said.

Tshabalala-Msimang said she believed that traditional medicine could not be adapted to western medicine.

"We believe that traditional medicine is a discipline on its own," she said, adding that traditional and western medicine should work hand in hand.

"We cannot ignore their immense contribution in the provision of health care over centuries."

The theme of the conference is "working together with traditional health practitioners in health care delivery?.

There are about 200 000 traditional healers in South Africa.

"These health practitioners are the first health care providers to be consulted in up to 80% of cases, especially in rural areas," she said.

"It is for this reason that there has been a recognition of traditional medicine practice in South Africa."

- SAPA