International symposium, exhibition in Nov. to promote traditional and complementary medicine

The Ministry of Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine and Department of Ayurveda of the Government of Sri Lanka, in collaboration with University of Sri Jayewardenepura and World Health Organization (WHO) has initiated to provide the world a stage to share expertise, knowledge and skills on cutting edge research interventions and inventions on traditional and complementary medicine through an International Symposium on Traditional and Complementary Medicine, Educational Exhibition & Trade Fair – 2017 to be held on 23, 24 and 25 November at Water’s Edge, Colombo.

This international conference ultimately aims to promote the need of evidence based researches leading to an integrative approach and personalised medical systems through evidence based practices and creating a platform to form multidisciplinary research collaborations and public private partnerships. 

The international symposium will be attended by over 30 eminent speakers from USA, UK, Australia, Singapore, Japan, China, India, South Korea, Netherlands, Iran and Thailand, where more than 48 lecture sessions will be conducted by local and international experts. 

Researchers will be offered an opportunity to share their research findings through oral and poster presentations. Abstracts to be presented will be selected based on the scientific validity through peer review by a panel of internationally selected reviewers who are specialised in each subject. Approximately 120 original abstracts will be selected for oral presentation and 100 abstract will be selected for poster presentation. The outstanding abstracts (100-150) will be published in the Biomed Central Journal of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (Impact Factor- 2.288). This is the first time that Sri Lankan Traditional Medicine Symposium proceedings will be published in an International Journal listed in PubMed of the US National Library of Medicine.

The overall aim of the international symposium is to share the expertise and novelties in evidence based practices of traditional medical systems in disease prevention, diagnosis and management and use of modern science and technology, diagnostic tools, bio-medical information system in traditional medicine in relation to the safe and effective product development with quality and standard. Also promote strategies for healthy life style to public through a public forum.

Another unique expected outcome of the international symposium is the issuance of Colombo Declaration/Statement, a ministerial level commitment of the participating countries to implement important outcomes of the symposium.

Target audience will be International and local practitioners and stakeholders of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and other traditional/indigenous systems of medicine, researchers in natural/herbal products development, academics, scientists, researchers, professionals, industrialists and investors, policy makers and Educational Exhibition and Trade Fair will be free for all and open for public.

Educational Exhibition & Trade Fair would be a parallel event to the international symposium which provides a golden opportunity to meet the local and international herbal based industries under one umbrella. According to Global Industry Analysts report, global herbal supplements and remedies market is forecast to reach $ 115 billion by the year 2020, spurred by growing aging population , increasing consumer awareness about general health, good lifestyle consciousness and wellbeing amongst society, rising cost of living and work-life stress urging consumers towards a more cost-effective, healthier and safer option of alternative medicine and dietary supplements and rise in consumer confidence in herbs for their healing properties in good health maintenance. Sri Lanka being a nation with rich history of traditional medicine through this educational exhibition and trade fair, aims to capture the growing herbal supplements and remedies market with a vision of ultimately becoming the healthcare hub of the Asia.

The exhibition comprises over 120 exhibitors from companies such as herbal/natural product industry (nutraceuticals, cosmecueticals, and pharmaceuticals), raw material suppliers and growers, organic food companies. It will be a great opportunity for the international and local herbal based industries to meet residential indigenous practitioners of Sri Lanka and explore their products.

It is high time to bring in our indigenous medical products in to the global herbal medicinal market. Therefore invitation to the trade fair is open for all the residential indigenous practitioners in Sri Lanka to market their products.

Also there will be meetings between (a) industries (B2B) for exchanging the ideas of business strategies in the herbal based industry (b) academics and industry (B2A) for exchange ideas of new innovations and looking for possibilities of developing new businesses.

This Educational Exhibition and Trade Fair is expected to be a platform to generate new business leads with industry related manufacturers, suppliers and distributors, network with fellow industry players for maximum exposure, exchange of ideas and partnership opportunities, create new markets with the international trade-related business fraternity, discover latest research breakthrough and developments in latest technology, understand major trends in the herbal marketplace to know rising demands and take in new concepts and needs of emerging markets.