Unlocking the power of traditional medicine: La Maison de l’Artemisia and the Haller Foundation

At Haller we have always understood that driving the greatest impact depends on forging and building partnerships with like minded people and organisations. We’re excited to announce that in April 2024 the award-winning Haller Farmers app will be available in French, as part of our collaboration with La Maison de l’Artemisia. 

La Maison de l’Artemisia is a global network working to promote greater understanding of the medicinal properties of plants. Their primary focus has been on Artemisia annua and afra, which can be used to fight malaria and other diseases, establishing partnerships with 130 organisations in over 28 countries to help realise this goal. 

Malaria continues to be a significant factor in childhood mortality in Africa, exacerbated by the lack of affordable treatment. An estimated 400,000 lives are lost annually to the disease across the continent, with children under the age of 5 accounting for 78% of all fatalities. 

Both the Artemisia annua and afra plants have been used for centuries in China and Africa against parasites. La Maison de l’Artemisia’s founder Lucile Cornet-Vernet witnessed the power of the plant first hand in the recovery of her friend Alexandre Poussin from malaria in Ethiopia. 

By helping the cultivation of medicinal plants, La Maison de l’Artemisia has enabled local communities in over 20 African countries to treat themselves with Artemisia herbal tea at low cost, locally and effectively. They have delivered over 8 million treatments since their foundation in 2013. 

The Haller Foundation has always strongly advocated for the use of traditional medicines by smallholder farmers, especially plants which can be grown by farmers themselves. The first instalment of the Haller Farmers app had a section dedicated to medicinal plants. The importance of such treatments should not be underestimated. Traditional medicine’s role in broader healthcare initiatives has been recognised by the World Health Organisation (WHO). 

According to the WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy, “Traditional Medicine, of proven quality, safety and efficacy, contributes to the goal of ensuring that all people have access to care” and “will help health care leaders to develop solutions that contribute to a broader vision of improved health and patient autonomy.” 

The partnership between La Maison de l’Artemisia and Haller will make the Haller Farmer’s App available in French, the third most spoken language across the continent. Not only will the existing sustainable agricultural techniques be more readily available to hundreds of millions more smallholder farmers, a new wealth of medicinal plant knowledge has been added in French, English and Swahili. 

There are an estimated 500 million smallholder farmers at the heart of our global agricultural industry, with more than 2 billion people depending on them for their livelihoods. The foundation for any improvement in their livelihoods is good health. We’re excited about the potential of this partnership to equip millions of smallholders around the world with accessible tools to protect and improve their health. If you want to learn more about the effectiveness of digital tools for small-holder farmers, please read our recent study in collaboration with La Maison de L'Artemisia, United Action for Children Cameroon, Centre for Community Health Change, Initiative for Climate and Renewable Energy Advocacy.

Elevating awareness of this exciting collaboration, Haller & La Maison de l’Artemisia will be taking part in the esteemed ChangeNOW sustainability conference in Paris in March. Recognised as the premier platform for impactful solutions for our planet, ChangeNOW catalyses the movement towards a more sustainable world. Join us as we proudly unveil our partnership at La Maison de l'Artemisia’s exhibit, engaging with a diverse global audience of sustainability pioneers, trailblazers, visionaries, and investors.

Make sure to follow the Haller Foundation and La Maison de l’Artemisia across socials to stay up to date with our collaborations.