Researchers from the School of Public Health at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology have received approval to commence clinical trials of a potential treatment for COVID-19.

The approval which was granted by Ghana's Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) and the National Medicine Regulatory Agency (NMRA) is for the herb Cryptolepis sanguinolenta, known locally as Nibima, Kadze and Gangamau.

The FDA in a press release said the approval follows "results from laboratory studies conducted by the KNUST research team which points in the direction of possible clinical benefits".

"The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA), the National Medicine Regulatory Agency (NMRA) in Ghana, has approved a herbal medicine, Cryptolepis sanguinolenta, locally known as Nibima for clinical trials in January 2021," the release said.

"In search for a treatment for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic researchers from the School of Public Health at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), submitted a clinical trial application in September 2020 to assess the safety and efficacy of Cryptolepis sanguinolenta as a potential treatment for Covid-19. This follows results from laboratory studies conducted by the KNUST research team which points in the direction of possible clinical benefits".

Nibima is already used locally as a herbal treatment for Malaria.