A report of the findings and recommendations of a working group convened to prepare guidelines for the use of herbal medicines in Western Pacific countries. Addressed to national health authorities, the report responds to the widespread use of herbal medicines in this part of the world and the corresponding need for mechanisms to ensure that these products are safe and effective. It sets out a framework for developing national policies designed to control the safety, efficacy, and quality of herbal medicines, manufacturing practices, product registration, and labelling, marketing and trade. The report has two parts. The guidelines are presented in the first, which opens with background information about the objectives of national policies, and the process by which national policies are developed and implemented is outlined. Ten specific issues that need to be addressed are identified and discussed. Subsequent chapters outline legal and other options available for the regulation of practitioners, manufacturers and the distribution system. The second part includes a summary of the working group’s deliberations and conclusions, followed by brief reports from 14 Western Pacific countries, which document the importance of herbal medicines and summarize existing systems for their regulation and control.