As the world grapples with rising lifestyle diseases, environmental degradation, and social fragmentation, there is a growing realisation that restoring the balance between people and the planet, progress and sustainability, innovation and intuition is a necessity.
Health, in its truest sense, has always been a reflection of harmony — within the human body and between humanity and nature. This is the principle that is at the heart of traditional medicine systems worldwide, which view health not merely as the absence of illness but as the presence of equilibrium. The science of well-being, therefore, is not new. It is the rediscovery of a traditional understanding, now being reaffirmed through evidence-based research.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) reports that around 90% of WHO member-states have reported on the use of traditional medicine. For billions of people, it remains the first line of care, particularly in low- and middle-income nations where accessibility and affordability are paramount.
Its value, however, extends well beyond health care. Traditional medicine supports biodiversity, nutrition, food security and livelihoods, embodying the holistic concept of integrative health. Market analysts estimate India’s AYUSH sector at $43.4 billion — a figure that tells a larger story. This surge is driven not only by consumer preference but also by a paradigm shift: health-care systems are evolving from reactive treatment models to proactive, preventive, and personalised ones. this global shift represents a shared realisation — that well-being cannot be achieved through fragmented approaches. It demands an ecosystem of balance — between mind and body, human and environment, science and spirit. It is a fact that India has emerged as a hub of innovative research and development initiatives, transforming the global traditional medicine sector.
To support this transformation, WHO’s Global Traditional Medicine Centre (GTMC) serves as a knowledge hub for evidence-based collaboration and innovation. With its strategic focus on evidence and learning, data and analytics, sustainability and equity, the GTMC aims to optimise the contribution of traditional medicine to global health and sustainable development. It also upholds a guiding principle often overlooked in the age of globalisation — a respect for local heritages, resources, and rights.
Established in Jamnagar, Gujarat, with the foundational support of the Government of India, the GTMC is an expression of shared global leadership. It reflects WHO’s vision that harnessing the potential of traditional medicine, when grounded in evidence, innovation, and sustainability, can be a game-changer for health.
India’s commitment to this vision stems from the belief that knowledge must serve humanity collectively. The establishment of the Centre in India is a testament to this spirit.
Under the Prime Minister’s emphasis on evidence-based research in the field, there have been initiatives such as a dedicated AYUSH department at the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), development of global standards in AYUSH Systems through ISO/TC 249/SC 2 subcommittee, paving the way for wider global acceptance of India’s traditional medicine.
The growing recognition of traditional medicine as a scientific and social asset took a decisive step in August 2023, when the first WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine was held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, alongside the G-20 Health Ministerial Meeting. The gathering of Ministers, scientists, practitioners and communities from around the world mobilised political commitment, fostered data-driven action, and laid the groundwork for evidence-based integration of traditional medicine into national health systems. The Gujarat Declaration, adopted at the Summit called for the protection of biodiversity, fair benefit-sharing, digital innovation, and equitable access to traditional health knowledge.
The global community is now ready to take the next step — to deepen scientific understanding, encourage innovation, and align traditional medicine’s potential with modern global health priorities. Thus, WHO and the Government of India have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to co-host the Second WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine (New Delhi, December 17–19, 2025), marking a new chapter in global collaboration for health and sustainability. With its theme, “Restoring balance: The science and practice of health and well-being”, it will mobilise multi-stakeholder action in support of WHO’s new 10-year Global Traditional Medicine Strategy (2025–34), adopted at the 78th World Health Assembly earlier this year.
These initiatives are designed not only to celebrate traditional medicine’s heritage but also to propel it into the future — where it stands validated by science, empowered by technology, and guided by ethics. As the birthplace of Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha and Sowa-Rigpa, India’s contribution lies in demonstrating how traditional knowledge can coexist with modern science.
Its approach is rooted in integration — uniting tradition with technology, research with community participation, and well-being with sustainability. As the world gathers once again under a shared commitment to restore balance, India’s message is simple yet profound: health must heal, not harm; progress must sustain, not consume; and science must serve, not separate.
The summit is more than an event — it is a global convergence to reaffirm that the future of health lies in harmony.
Prataprao Jadhav is Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH and Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Government of India
Published – November 24, 2025 12:32 am IST
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