New Delhi [India], December 18 : The Second WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine kicked off on Wednesday, with a focus on "Restoring Balance: The Science and Practice of Health and Well-Being," at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, according to AYUSH press release.
Union Health Minister JP Nadda and WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasised the importance of traditional medicine in global healthcare.
Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare JP Nadda, in the presence of Union Minister Prataprao Jadhav inaugurated the Second WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi today. Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General, WHO, also shared a special video message that was played during the inaugural session.
The session marks the start of the three-day global scientific gathering, held from December 17th to 19th, 2025. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to grace the closing ceremony of the Summit on December 19th, 2025.
Centered on the theme "Restoring Balance: The Science and Practice of Health and Well-Being," the summit is being jointly organized by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Ayush, Government of India. The event brings together policymakers, scientists, practitioners, Indigenous knowledge holders, and civil society leaders from around the world to advance a shared vision of balanced, inclusive, and sustainable health systems, the release added.
The summit brought together policymakers, scientists, and practitioners to advance a shared vision of balanced, inclusive, and sustainable health systems. Key discussions centered on integrating traditional medicine into national health systems, ensuring safety and quality, and promoting biodiversity conservation.
Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the WHO, in a video message, appreciated India's partnership and leadership in traditional medicine. Emphasising that health is not only about technology and treatment but also about balance, dignity and the shared wisdom of humanity, he noted that the World Health Assembly earlier this year adopted the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025-2034.
The strategy focuses on strengthening the evidence base to guide decisions through science and data, ensuring safety and quality through effective regulation, integrating traditional, complementary and integrative medicine (TCIM) into national health systems beginning with primary health care, and unlocking its broader value for biodiversity, sustainability and community well-being. He further highlighted that to translate this strategy into action, WHO has established the Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in India.
India's efforts to promote traditional medicine were highlighted, including the launch of the ICD-11 Module 2 and the establishment of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre in Jamnagar. The summit also featured a session on Ashwagandha, showcasing its therapeutic benefits and the need for rigorous research and standardization.
In his inaugural address, Union Minister Shri Prataprao Jadhav said, "India's collaboration with the World Health Organization reflects a shared commitment to bring traditional medicine into the mainstream of global healthcare through science, standards, and evidence. Since the partnership began in 2016, significant milestones have been achieved, including the launch of ICD-11 Module 2 in 2024, integrating Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani morbidity codes into international health classification. Ongoing work on the International Classification of Health Interventions (ICHI) and the upcoming WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre in Jamnagar, scheduled for completion in October 2025, underscore a decisive shift towards global acceptance, harmonization, and institutional strengthening of traditional medicine."
Jadhav also said "India continues to expand international cooperation in the field of traditional medicine through education, research, and capacity building. The country offers 104 scholarships annually to foreign nationals, has signed 26 country-level MoUs, collaborates with over 50 institutions worldwide, and has established Ayush Chairs in 15 universities and Ayush Information Cells in 43 countries. Collaborative research initiatives, including Ashwagandha trials in the United Kingdom, Guduchi studies in Germany, and Ayurveda-based diabetes research in Latvia, are generating a growing body of evidence. Leveraging digital platforms such as the Ayush Grid and advanced technologies including artificial intelligence, India is systematically documenting and validating traditional knowledge to address contemporary global health challenges."
Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Ayush Ministry's Secretary, highlighted that the Summit builds on the momentum of the first WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine and the Gujarat Declaration, reaffirming a shared global commitment to science-based, sustainable, and equitable Traditional Medicine.
He emphasized India's role as a committed partner to WHO and Member States, underscored the significance of the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Centre at Jamnagar as a global hub for policy, research, and innovation, and noted that the Summit--guided by the WHO Global Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025-2034--aims to strengthen regulation and integration of Traditional Medicine into health systems, safeguard biodiversity and traditional knowledge, and harness frontier technologies, all anchored in the theme of "Restoring Balance" for people and the planet.
The ceremony was attended by esteemed dignitaries, including Dr. Goh Cheng Soon (Malaysia) and Prof. Motlalepula Matsabisa (South Africa), Co-chairs of the Steering Committee of the Second WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine.
The sessions collectively reinforced the understanding that health is deeply rooted in balance--between individuals, their communities and the environment.
Amid environmental pressures, structural inequities, and governance gaps increasingly disrupting this equilibrium, speakers called for holistic approaches that uphold Indigenous rights, safeguard knowledge systems, strengthen evidence structures, and ensure fair benefit-sharing. The insights emerging from these deliberations position Traditional Medicine as a vital catalyst for restoring harmony between people and ecosystems, setting the conceptual foundation for the Summit's forthcoming technical discussions and policy dialogues.