Home Garden with different species of medicinal plants

Eighty percent of the Ethiopian people depend on traditional medicine for their health care, and more than 95% of traditional medicinal preparations in Ethiopia are made from plant origin. There are about 887 medicinal plant species that are currently used by the Ethiopian people. The majority of the medicinal plants are herbs, followed by shrubs and trees (Table 1). Twenty four (2.7%) medicinal plant species are endemic to Ethiopia. Most of the medicinal plant species are  found in the wild (Table 2) and therefore, the threats and trends are similar to those of the forest plant species.

Table 1. Distribution of the medicinal plants by their growth forms

Growth habit No. of species Percent
Herbs 271 30.5
Shrubs 168 19.0
Trees 110 12.4
Climbers 74 8.3
Reed 2 0.2
Unidentified 262 29.6

Table 2. Distribution of medicinal plants by their state of existence

State of existence No. of species Percent
Wild 357 40.2
Cultivated 89 10
Weed 52 5.9
Undetermined 389 43.9
Source: Ethiopia’s CBD 4th Country Report