LEGISLATOR CHAMPIONS MALAWI'S HOMEGROWN VIAGRA

An outspoken Malawian legislator, already well-known as a champion of
legalising marijuana, is now touting a herbal aphrodisiac which he says
could help lift the nation out of poverty

Joe Manduwa, of the ruling United Democratic Front (UDF), says Malawi's
traditional version of the anti-impotence pill Viagra, a herbal treatment
called Gondolosi, could be a hit in Western nations. "Some herbs such as
Gondolosi have a commercial value which can boost the economy. If the West
sells us viagra at high prices, Malawi can do the same with Gondolosi,"
Manduwa said.

Six tablets of Viagra sell for about $20 in Malawi, a sum beyond the reach
of ordinary people.

Gondolosi, scientifically known as Mondia whytei, is a shrub that grows
throughout the country. Herbalists use the shrub's bark and root to make a
powder, or sell the entire root, in most urban markets.

"Mondia whytei is well recommended as an aphrodisiac. It's up to the
government to approve its export," said Augustine Saudeni, an expert in
traditional healing plants.

Saudeni works at a state-run herbarium and botanical gardens in Zomba, 70
kilometres from Blantyre, where he identifies plants used in traditional
remedies.

Manduwa said the country should remove the veil of secrecy about this herb
in order to cash in on the export market.

A former agriculture official, Manduwa has repeatedly tried to promote
alternatives to tobacco as a major foreign exchange earner. Tobacco
accounts for 70% of Malawi's foreign exchange earnings.

He said traditional healers were secretive about the herb, fearing
scientists would reap financial rewards from the knowledge.

Two years ago Manduwa stirred controversy in parliament when he recommended
the country should start growing marijuana, for non-narcotic purposes, to
replace tobacco.

Malawian cannabis is renowned in the region as one of the best available,
although it is illegal to grow, smoke or deal in it.

Tobacco sales have sagged as a result of the effective global anti-smoking
lobby and low sales at auction floors here.

Manduwa urged the government to allow cannabis to be grown for non-narcotic
uses, such as making hemp products.

That proposal never got off the ground, in part because Malawi had signed
an accord with two UN agencies to counter cannabis production and trafficking.

That deal runs until 2004, and seeks to educate Malawians on the harmful
effects of narcotic drugs and to develop new legislation to control their
production and use. - AFP