AN alert has been circulated to the Ministries of Agriculture and Livestock, Natural Resources and Tourism and Health and Social Welfare as well as different experts on the possibility of the African potato going extinct from overharvesting.
The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare Acting Assistant Director (Traditional Medicine), Dr Paulo Mhame told the 'Sunday News' that the trend is very worrying and immediate action needed to be taken. "The two regions that the potato grows in are Iringa and Njombe.
Our biggest challenge at the moment is legislation, the potato grows only into a shrub of a foot and half and so people harvest the way they want while we have laws to stop them," he said.
The Forest Act of 2002 aims at providing for the management of forests and to repeal certain laws relating to forests and similar matters. It provides for the general legal framework for the conservation and management of forests, the African potato being a shrub is orphaned by this law.
The African wild potato is a bitter plant used for a wide variety of conditions including diabetes mellitus, haemorrhage, prostate problems and boost immune function.
Based on indirect evidence, it is said that sterols and sterolins (any of various alcohols having the structure of a steroid) in Hypoxis (African potato, Star-grass, Star lily, Yellow stars, Yellow stargrass) root have the potential to enhance immunity. Some believe its nutrient values are 50,000 times greater than modern vegetables.
Today, sterols and sterolins are still sought after and are preferred immune system boosters to HIV/AIDS sufferers. Traditional healers have used the African wild potato by boiling it into tea for its medicinal properties. In southern Mozambique, it was widely used during the Civil War (1976-1992) by both soldiers and civilians who lost blood through injuries. The tea from the plant is said to quickly replace lost blood.
The tea is used in conjunction with other plants to combat "bad blood" in patients with diabetes mellitus. The Shangaan used African wild potato in a mixture with other plants for endometriosis and premenstrual syndrome (PMS). The rootstock was one of the ingredients of an infusion taken as an "internal parasiticide" and purgative. The Manyika used the rootstock for medicinal and ceremonial purposes.
The Karanga used the rootstock as a remedy for vomiting, loss of appetite, abdominal pains and fevers. It was also used to treat delirium. Dr Mhame explained that his department was concerned because it takes five to six years for an African potato to be ready for harvesting.
He revealed that the potato was also found in other African countries like South Africa, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi but that in South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe - the crop had been depleted and that it was widely available in Tanzania.
"I have written to Regional Medical Officers and other authorities and have received a very positive response on their support to curb this problem. What is desperately needed is an inventory to be conducted to know how much is grown and the amount which is being harvested and being exported to the Southern parts of the continent, "he said.
The traditional medicine expert said that he was striving to convene a meeting with different stakeholders, on how to deal with the crisis but was a little dumbfounded on the way forward, taking into consideration that there wasn't any legislation that the meeting can use.
Dr Mhame said that while a solution is being sought on getting some form of legislation that can reduce the harvesting, he urged seed breeders in the country to take up interest in coming up with varieties that will ensure by the time the whole country is ready to use traditional medicine without prejudice, the crop with many medicinal potential will be readily available.
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