Ministry of Ayush signed the Host Country Agreement with World Health Organization (WHO) for establishing WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in India at Jamnagar, Gujarat, with its interim office at the Institute of Training and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA) in Gujarat. This Centre will be supported by an investment of about USD 250 million from the Government of India. The primary objective of GCTM is to harness the potential of traditional medicine from across the world through modern science and technology and improve overall health of the communities’ world over.
The Agreement was signed on 25th March in Geneva by Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush and Director General, WHO Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Last month, the Union Cabinet had approved the establishment of the Centre.
GCTM will be the first and only Global Centre (office) for traditional medicine across the globe. It will focus on building solid evidence base for policies and standards on traditional medicine practices and products and help countries integrate it as appropriate into their health systems and regulate its quality and safety for optimal and sustainable impact.
Groundbreaking ceremony will take place on 21st April, 2022 in the august presence of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.