IJAER

International Journal of Agriculture and Environmental Research™

ISSN 2455-6939

Title:
'ETHNOMEDICINAL PLANT KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE IN ANKPA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF KOGI STATE, NIGERIA

Authors:
Ancha, P.U., Ikyaagba, E.T ., Dagba, B.I and Okpanachi, K

Abstract:
Ethnomedicinal plant knowledge and practice was conducted in Ankpa Local Government Area (LGA) of Kogi State to document information on the use of plant species for the treatment of various ailments due to paucity of such information that can be used by decision makers in planning for the plant species. Simple random sampling technique was adopted to sample 180 respondents for four months. Semi structured questionnaire, oral interview and personal observations were used to collect data from the respondents. Descriptive statistics and Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) were used to determine the consensus on medicinal plant knowledge among the traditional medicine practitioners. The results of the study showed that 87.2% of the respondents were males and 35% had no formal education. The respondents in the age category of 41-50 (43.9%) were more knowledgeable in plant use and 92.2% were married. Eighty nine medicinal plant species belonging to forty four families were identified as plants used for treatment of various ailments in the study area; and majority of the plants belong to the family Fabaceae. The digestive system category of ailments had the highest prevalence in the study area. The major threat to medicinal plants in the area is agricultural expansion. The study concluded that, the elderly respondents were more knowledgeable in plant use than the younger ones. The study recommends that, there is every need to document more medicinal plant species so as to provide information on health care, forest conservation and for investigation into the chemical properties of these plants.

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