TRADITIONAL ANTIDIABETIC PLANTS IN EIGHT WEST AFRICAN COUNTRIES: SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF ETHNOBOTANICAL STUDIES AND PRIORITY SPECIES

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is rising across West Africa, where barriers to sustained access to conventional care and strong cultural acceptability of traditional medicine drive widespread use of plant-based remedies. Ethnobotanical evidence is dispersed across countries and often reported with variable botanical verification and quantitative prioritization, limiting cross-country comparison and selection of candidate species for validation and safety monitoring. Objective of the study was to systematically synthesise ethnobotanical or ethnopharmacological studies reporting medicinal plants used to manage diabetes mellitus or hyperglycaemia in eight West African countries, and summarise commonly cited species, plant parts, preparation methods, and routes of administration. This review was conducted and reported in line with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) 2020 guidance. Searches of PubMed and Google Scholar were complemented by targeted journal or publisher website searches and backward reference screening (last search: 18 December 2025). Primary ethnobotanical or ethnopharmacological studies from eight West African countries reporting ≥1 plant used for diabetes or hyperglycaemia were eligible (English or French). Records were screened in two stages (title or abstract, then full text). Extracted data included country or setting, respondent type, sample size (if reported), antidiabetic species, plant parts, preparation or administration patterns, and priority species (e.g., highest relative frequency of citation where reported). The search yielded 512 records; after de-duplication (92 removed), 420 records were screened and 12 studies met inclusion criteria (8 countries: Nigeria, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Senegal, Sierra Leone). Across studies, a total of 8 recurrently reported antidiabetic medicinal plant species were identified. Leaves were the most commonly reported plant part and decoction was the predominant preparation method, with oral administration most frequently described. Recurrently reported candidate species across multiple settings included Azadirachta indica, Momordica charantia, Moringa oleifera, Phyllanthus amarus, Khaya senegalensis, Garcinia kola, Citrus aurantifolia, and Tetrapleura tetraptera. Among these, Moringa oleifera was reported in 8 of the 12 studies and Azadirachta indica in 7 of 12 studies, indicating their frequent citation across countries. Where quantitative prioritization was reported, Citrus aurantifolia was highlighted as the highest-ranked species in Benin (RFC = 0.21). In conclusion the diabetes ethnomedicine of eight West African countries is characterised by reliance on leaf-based aqueous preparations, mainly decoctions or infusions, administered orally, and a recurring shortlist of priority species. Future studies should strengthen reporting (voucher specimens, quantitative indices, dosing details) and link priority plants to toxicovigilance or pharmacovigilance and staged experimental or clinical validation.