Over 70 traditional healers are undergoing a six-month course at the University of Zimbabwe under the pharmacy department after which they will be attached to reputable traditional “medical” practitioners.
This is the first ever formal training of traditional healers in Zimbabwe and the first classes began yesterday.
School of Pharmacy director, who is also the Traditional Medical Practitioners’ Council chairperson, Charles Maponga, said the response was encouraging.
“We have started the course here at the school. It started today (yesterday) and we have had a positive response and they have come in their numbers for the training,” said Maponga.
Maponga said the first two weeks would be theory, followed by attachments before the students returned to the college. The participants will be attached to registered practitioners, spiritual healers or traditional birth attendants (nyamukutas).
Maponga said the course would help eradicate societal misconceptions about traditional healers. “If we are to catch up with the rest of the world, we need to formalise it (traditional healing) and this is a way to control traditional healers and also to supervise them and promote this through research and education,” he said.
The certificate has about eight modules which include law, ethics, introduction to business, project management and sustainable community development.
Some of the lecturers are Professor Lameck Chagonda, president of the Chiefs’ Council Chief Fortune Charumbira, and World Health Organisation African regional co-ordinator for traditional medicines Ossy Kasilo.
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