Representatives of the Ooni of Ife, Arole Oduduwa Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, CFR, Ojaja II, have joined a high-level Nigerian delegation in Brazil to advance international recognition, scientific validation and institutional acceptance of African traditional medicine through a landmark partnership between Nigeria and Brazil.
The engagement took place during the Brazil–Nigeria High-Level Bilateral Meeting on Traditional Medicine and Scientific Cooperation, hosted by the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz) in Rio de Janeiro, where government officials, researchers, academics and traditional medicine stakeholders from both countries adopted a comprehensive implementation roadmap aimed at strengthening collaboration in indigenous healthcare, scientific research and public health innovation.
According to a statement issued on Saturday by the Ooni’s Senior Media Officer, Sodiq Lawal, the meeting concluded with an agreement to deepen cooperation in traditional medicine, medicinal plant research, technology transfer, postgraduate education, institutional partnerships and public health initiatives.
Representing the Ooni at the summit were the Director of Media and Public Affairs at the Ooni’s Palace, Otunba Moses Olafare, and the President of Oduduwa Heritage Home in Brazil as well as International Consultant to the World Orisa Congress (WOOCON), Ajoyemi Olabisi Osunleye.
The meeting brought together representatives of Fiocruz, the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Royal Palace of the Ooni of Ife, Afe Babalola University (ABUAD), Harvard University, Brazil’s Ministry of Racial Equality and members of the African Pride delegation to strengthen South-South cooperation in traditional medicine, medicinal plant research, human milk banking and academic exchange.
Participants reaffirmed the commitment of both countries to scientifically validate traditional medicine and integrate evidence-based indigenous healthcare practices into modern health systems while preserving the cultural heritage from which such knowledge originates.
One of the major highlights of the meeting was the review of the ongoing Harvard–Brazil–Nigeria metabolomics research project, involving 68 medicinal plants currently being studied for their potential in diabetes treatment. Discussions also explored expanding the research to include additional medicinal products with therapeutic value.
The summit further acknowledged Brazil’s existing database of approximately 500 scientifically validated medicinal plants, describing it as a strong foundation for future collaborative research involving Nigerian and Brazilian institutions.
Another significant outcome was the agreement to support the establishment of a Human Milk Bank in Nigeria, drawing on Fiocruz’s extensive experience and the technical expertise of the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Collaborating Centre.
The bilateral discussions also linked the emerging partnership to broader global climate and sustainability initiatives through the International Savanna Forum and COP31, scheduled to hold in Goiânia, Brazil, later this year, with biodiversity conservation, health innovation and social technology identified as priority areas for collaboration.
The meeting also recognised Brazil’s efforts to secure institutional recognition for the healthcare practices of traditional terreiro communities, while noting that Nigeria’s long-standing experience in preserving indigenous medicine provides valuable insights for international policy development.
Speaking during the opening session, Otunba Moses Olafare emphasised that any long-term collaboration between both countries must be built on three interconnected pillars—indigenous wisdom, traditional medicinal plants and scientific research.
“The foundation of this partnership should rest on three inseparable pillars: indigenous wisdom, traditional medicinal plants and scientific research.
“Our purpose is not merely to preserve traditional knowledge, but to combine the wisdom safeguarded by our communities over generations with rigorous scientific research capable of validating, improving and responsibly applying that knowledge for the benefit of humanity.
“Through this approach, we can transform our shared biodiversity and ancestral knowledge into safe, effective and evidence-based health innovations that contribute to public health, scientific advancement and sustainable development.
“These principles should form the cornerstone of the Memorandum of Understanding and all future cooperative initiatives arising from this historic meeting.”
Presenting the position of the Ooni of Ife, the royal delegation stressed that African traditional medicine extends beyond the use of herbs and medicinal plants, describing it as a holistic system rooted in generations of ancestral knowledge, spirituality, oral traditions and sacred cultural practices.
The delegation maintained that within Yoruba civilisation, prayers, incantations and other intangible cultural expressions remain essential components of healing and should receive recognition alongside scientific validation within any international framework governing traditional medicine.
Leading the Nigerian delegation, the Executive Director of the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO), Otunba Biodun Ajiboye, reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to preserving indigenous knowledge systems through research, documentation and international collaboration.
He described the partnership as a significant step toward repositioning Africa’s cultural heritage and indigenous scientific knowledge within the global healthcare ecosystem.
Also speaking, the Vice-Chancellor of Afe Babalola University (ABUAD), Prof. Elisabeth Smaranda Olarinde, highlighted the university’s growing achievements in traditional medicine research, noting that several medicinal products developed through its research programmes have progressed beyond laboratory studies into practical production.
She said the institution’s achievements demonstrate the capacity of Nigerian universities to convert scientific discoveries into healthcare solutions capable of improving lives.
As part of resolutions reached during the meeting, participants approved a detailed implementation calendar to ensure that agreements reached are translated into measurable actions.
Under the roadmap, participating institutions will immediately validate the meeting’s resolutions and formalise the existing Letter of Intent before establishing a Joint Working Group in August 2026 to coordinate the implementation process.
The Working Group will oversee the drafting of a comprehensive Memorandum of Understanding involving Fiocruz, the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Royal Palace of the Ooni of Ife and Afe Babalola University, with active participation from Brazil’s Ministries of Health and Racial Equality.
The proposed agreement will focus on collaborative research in traditional medicine, medicinal plant development, human milk banking, postgraduate education, technology transfer, joint scientific publications and institutional cooperation.
According to the implementation timeline, the partnership will be presented at the International Savanna Forum and COP31 in September 2026 as a Global South model for addressing challenges relating to healthcare, climate resilience and sustainable development.
The roadmap also provides for the review of the Memorandum of Understanding in October, its formal signing in November 2026 and the commencement of pilot medicinal plant projects, academic exchange programmes, postgraduate collaborations and certification courses in traditional medicine between December 2026 and January 2027.
The implementation framework further recommends that the Royal Palace of the Ooni of Ife continues to play a central coordinating role alongside relevant Nigerian institutions in driving the partnership, while both countries pursue sustained cooperation in biodiversity conservation, indigenous healthcare innovation and scientific research.
The Nigerian delegation included Executive Director of the National Institute for Cultural Orientation, Otunba Biodun Ajiboye; Director of Media and Public Affairs to the Ooni, Otunba Moses Olafare; Princess Kemi Fadojutimi; Harvard University researcher Dr. Kunle Jayesimi; traditional medicine practitioners Chief Olokooba Atinuke Fagoroye and High Chief Olokooba Adekunle Sunbo; Ooni’s ambassadors to South America, Ajoyemi Osunleye and Carolina Maria Morais Osunleye; Vice-Chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Prof. Elisabeth Smaranda Olarinde; Professor Tunbosun Ogundipe; and Dr. Akawa Oluwole.
The Brazilian delegation was led by Fiocruz President Mario Santos Moreira, alongside Vice President Valcler Rangel and senior officials from Fiocruz, Brazil’s Ministry of Racial Equality and the World Health Organization’s Human Milk Bank Network.
If fully implemented, the resolutions reached at the summit are expected to significantly strengthen Nigeria–Brazil relations while positioning African traditional medicine and indigenous knowledge systems as globally recognised contributors to modern healthcare through evidence-based scientific collaboration.