RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: In order to improve the contribution of medicines from traditional pharmacopoeia to health care, African countries like Burkina Faso have adopted for several years, policies and regulations organizing their distribution. This study aims to analyze the situation of the wholesale and retail sale of herbal medicines imported by the official pharmaceutical facilities. METHOD: This is a retrospective study involving all 18 drug wholesalers and 115 pharmacies in the city of Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso). It consisted of a collection of sales data of herbal medicines from 2013 to 2016 and interviews of the pharmacists responsible for the facilities surveyed. RESULTS: All the pharmacies surveyed obtain their supplies from national wholesalers, but eleven of them do so directly from manufacturers or non-wholesalers. Only 40% (44/111) of herbal medicines distributed by wholesalers and pharmacies had valid marketing authorizations. Also, although the average growth rates of annual sales by wholesalers and private pharmacies, respectively 23.67% and 11.94%, are significant, the turnover generated from their sale remains low. CONCLUSION: Supporting local producers with appropriate funding and adequate promotion of herbal medicines is still needed to boost the share of the national herbal medicines market.