Prof. Dr. Muhammad Iqbal Choudhary, Coordinator General of OIC-COMSTECH, presented a detailed keynote on Traditional Medicine and its role in reducing the global disease burden at the 13th World Integrative Medicine Congress (WIMCO 2025) in Changchun, China. He argued that evidence-based traditional approaches are increasingly vital to modern healthcare systems, particularly where access and affordability remain major challenges.
Prof. Dr. Choudhary cautioned that the prevailing drug discovery model is becoming unsustainable and exclusive, leaving many low- and middle-income countries vulnerable to drug insecurity. He highlighted that for large segments of the global population, Traditional Medicine and other complementary therapies remain the primary source of care and must be brought into mainstream health planning.
Responding to whether traditional remedies can bridge current gaps, he said that evidence-based TCIM can serve as first-line treatment for numerous conditions, support disease prevention, and improve chronic disease management. Traditional Medicine offers sustainable, naturally diverse chemical scaffolds that are well suited to address long-term health needs and reduce reliance on costly interventions.
Pointing to global guidance, Prof. Dr. Choudhary underscored the World Health Organization recommendation for member states to integrate TCIM into national health systems. Such integration, he noted, has the potential to reduce healthcare inequities, strengthen resilience, and expand affordable care options for communities across Pakistan and other OIC member states.
He also highlighted active Pakistan-China collaboration in traditional medicine, citing the Sino-Pakistan Cooperation Centre on Traditional Medicine established at the International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi, as a model for South–South scientific cooperation. OIC-COMSTECH’s partnerships with institutions including Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Ningbo University, the China Science and Technology Exchange Center, Huawei Technologies, and Xinjiang Medical University were presented as concrete steps to boost research, innovation and capacity building in traditional medicine and biotechnology.
Prof. Dr. Choudhary concluded with a call for strengthened international partnerships through OIC-COMSTECH, sustained interdisciplinary research, and supportive policy measures to realise the full potential of Traditional Medicine for global health, sustainable development, and inclusive innovation. He urged stakeholders in Pakistan to prioritise evidence-based integration of traditional systems to expand access and improve national health outcomes.
