TRADE POTENTIAL AND CONSERVATION ISSUES OF MEDICINAL PLANTS IN DISTRICT SWAT, PAKISTAN

Use of medicinal plants for various health disorders is a common practice especially in rural areas. Poor economic condition and lack of modern health care facilities in remote areas are the major reasons for adopting traditional medicine. Mingora is considered as the main center of trade of medicinal plants not only of Swat but of the entire Hindu Kush-Himalayan Region of Pakistan. The city was analyzed for the trade potential of local medicinal plants. The present study reported trade and marketing profile of 99 species collected locally and sold in the national and international markets. A total of 99 taxa were collected belonging to 55 families and 80 genera. Helvellaceae was at the top among the largest families with 9 taxa, followed by Asteraceae and Solanacea with 8 and 6 taxa respectively. Among the life form Chamaephyte was at the top with 27 taxa (27.27%), followed by Hemicryptophyte, Phanerophyte, Therophyte, Geophyte and Parasite with 25 (25.25%), 24 (24.24%), 17 (20.20%), 2 (2.02%) and 1 taxa (1.01%), respectively. Market analysis revealed that annual production and its share to the market was 8.056 and 6.644 million kg during the years 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 whereas, it gave rise to the circulation of Rs. 4475.00 and Rs. 5084.70 millions, respectively. Thus quantity traded decreased due to the unsustainable collection in the wild, while amount circulated increased due to rise in price kg(-1) as a result of increased demand from the national and international market. According to an estimate approximately 99,840 individuals (i.e. 8% of the total population of Swat) are associated with the collection or trade of these important medicinal plants in the valley. The study also revealed that availability of medicinal plants decreased day by day and this process is continued for the last two decades. According to local elders, most of the medicinal plants reported were abundant in the vicinities some 20 years back. However, their population was drastically decreased due to over exploitation, extension in agricultural lands, increased market pressure, lack of alternate earning opportunities in the area and unsustainable harvesting methods etc. All these threats have affected the population size of these medicinal plants in the wild. Therefore, early measures for the management of medicinal flora for sustaining its market supply and there by securing livelihood opportunities of rural communities are needed on urgent basis.