Conservation of Medicinal and Herbal Plants Project

closed

The Conservation of Medicinal and Herbal Plants Project for jordan aims to design and test models to improve the conservation of medicinal and herbal plants and the livelihood of rural communities. This would be done through the management and sustainable use of medicinal and herbal plants (M/H) plants for human and livestock needs in the Mujib Nature Reserve and the Central Upper Slopes of the Rift Valley in Jordan, while ensuring effective in-situ protection of threatened habitats and ecosystems in these areas. There are four main components. Component 1, institutional strengthening, is composed of 6 sub-components: establishing a project management unit; developing links between government agencies, the growers of medicinal/herbal plants, the pharmaceutical industry, other producers of M/H plant products, nongovernmental organizations, and consumers; designing an intellectual property rights framework; establishing health and safety standards; establishing a national M/H plants database and gene pool; and designing and implementing a training program. Component 2, the pilot-sites conservation component, has two sub-components, namely the in-situ protection and management of M/H plants and the ex-situ production of rare, endangered and popular M/H plants to relieve in-situ pressure. Component 3 consists of environmental education and public awareness. Component 4 focuses on income generating activities, among them, organic farming certification, standards for M/H plants for harvested products, processing standards for M/H plant manufactured products, quality control of M/H plant products, product development, market identification, and facilitating access to microcredit.