Stakeholders’ Attitude on the Use of ICT Tools for Sustainable Propagation of Indigenous Knowledge in Tanzania: A Case of Traditional Medical Knowledge of Medicinal Plants

Abstract

Most local communities in Tanzania depend on herbal remedies as the primary source of health care and such knowledge have been stored in the minds of the elderly who pass it on orally to young generations. However, the method is not reliable, as there is a likelihood of gradual loss of such knowledge as the elderly become older and incapacitated. It is at the backdrop of such a scenario that this study investigated the stakeholder’s attitude towards the use of information and communication technology tools in preserving traditional medical knowledge in Tanzania. The study also investigated the existing approaches for managing both traditional medical practitioners, herbaria activities and the difficulties. Both quantitative and qualitative data were employed and the study covered Arusha, Kagera and Dar es Salaam regions where 60 ethnobotanical researchers and 156 traditional medical practitioners were involved. The collected data was analyzed using R and Tableau software. The study indicated that 75% of traditional medical practitioners use story-telling for preserving traditional medical knowledge; 86.53% of practitioners indicated that much of the knowledge has disappeared over generations. More than half (69.87%) of practitioners were aware of the existence of technological devices for accessing the internet and 80.5% of researchers and practitioners believed that Information and Communication Technology tools have benefits in the practice of traditional medicine. From the findings, the study came up with the ICT model solution that can help in documenting, preserving and disseminating traditional medical knowledge and integrate the management of stakeholders in Tanzania.