Medicinal plants of Otwal and Ngai Sub Counties in Oyam District, Northern Uganda

Information was obtained from mainly the local population, the traditional healers and other experienced persons through interviews, formal and informal discussions and field excursions.Seventy one plant species were reported for use in the treatment of various diseases in the study area. These plant species belongs to 41 families, with Asteraceae being the most represented. Roots were ranked the commonest plant part used. Oral administration was the most frequently used route of administration. A total of 41 different health conditions were reported to be treated by use of medicinal plant species. Thirty nine percent of the recorded plant species were reported for treating stomach related ailments.The use of medicinal plants in primary healthcare is still a common practice in Ngai and Otwal Sub Counties. The trust they have is built on the curative outcome properties claimed, poverty and armed conflict that lead to inadequate healthcare facilities. The generation gap caused by the over 20 years of insurgency in the area has brought about knowledge gap on the usage of medicinal plant species between the young and the older generation.World wide over 80% of the people depend on medicinal plant species to meet their day today healthcare needs [1]. Rural household of Uganda rely heavily on plant resources for food, fodder and herbal medicine [2]. Tabuti [2] further asserted that savanna environment contains many plant resources of economic values such as foods and medicines. These resources are widely relied on by rural communities in developing countries because of inefficiencies in service delivery or because social services and goods are unaffordable. For this reason many people are currently resorting to traditional medicine for primary health care due to high costs in accessibility, cultural compatibility, self-reliance among others [3]. They also employ herbal medicines because of cultural preferences and perceived effectiveness [4,5].Medicinal plant species form