Nyarkotey Obu's Call to the Ghana Bar: A Milestone for Naturopathy, and a Test for Its Regulation
Lawyer Raphael Nyarkotey Obu, a Ghanaian naturopathic scholar and healthcare policy advocate, was called to the Ghana Bar on Friday, 9 October 2026. ModernGhana reports he is the first naturopath to become a lawyer in two African jurisdictions — a symbolic milestone for a profession that has long fought for recognition.
From Banjul to Accra
His first call came in The Gambia. In November 2024, he became the first naturopath in Africa to be called to the Gambian Bar. The path was not easy: Bar fees alone amounted to US$8,000 at a time when Ghana’s cedi was weak, and he resat Legislative Drafting three times before passing.
He credits the support of Gambian colleagues, and traditional healers presented him with Artemisia annua at the ceremony as a symbol of his mission to protect traditional medicine.
A Career Built Across Fields
Law is only one of several tracks he has pursued. He is President of Nyarkotey University College of Holistic Medicine and Technology, which he founded as Ghana’s first naturopathic medical school. He is also a chartered health economist and chartered management consultant, and was pursuing a second MPhil/PhD in Law and Development.
He earlier led a team that developed Ghana’s first National Occupational Standards in Naturopathy and Holistic Health Sciences. According to his own account, a colleague advised him in 2018 to combine law with naturopathy to address systemic gaps in the industry.
Why the Bar Matters
The timing is significant. Ghana’s alternative medicine sector has been embroiled in regulatory disputes. In 2025, the Traditional Medicine Practice Council (TMPC) reportedly called for his arrest, alleging he acted contrary to its authority.
He responded that, as General Secretary of the Ghana Alternative Medical Practitioners Association, he had legally challenged the TMPC’s authority to regulate alternative medicine. A lawyer within the profession can now argue these questions in court and in policy spaces — not only through public statements.
What Readers Should Weigh
Supporters see a pioneer professionalising a field and giving traditional healers a voice in legal and policy debates. Sceptics note that naturopathy remains contested among medical professionals, and a law licence does not resolve questions about evidence for specific treatments.
He himself acknowledges that naturopathy has long attracted scepticism and that critics question practitioners’ qualifications. Both views can be true. The real test is whether his new standing leads to clear regulation, patient‑safety standards and honest evidence — not merely titles.
For Ghana, the broader point is that health and law increasingly overlap: medical negligence, traditional medicine licensing, and questions of regulatory authority. Practitioners who understand both sides could improve the debate if they use their position for accountability.
Mustapha Bature Sallama
Medical/Science Communicator
Private Investigator, Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Analysis
International Conflict Management and Peacebuilding (USIP)
Email: Mustysallama@gmail.com
Phone: +233 555 275 880
References
- ModernGhana, "Ghanaian Naturopathic Scholar Called to Ghana Bar, first Naturopath to Become Lawyer in Two Jurisdictions in Africa," https://www.modernghana.com/lifeclass/17528/ghanaian-naturopathic-scholar-called-to-ghana.html
- ModernGhana, "Prof Nyarkotey Obu joins Gambia Bar, becomes first…" https://www.modernghana.com/lifeclass/16328/prof-nyarkotey-obu-joins-gambia-bar-becomes-firs.html
- Prof. Raphael Nyarkotey Obu, "Bridging naturopathy and law – a journey in The Gambia," Business & Financial Times. https://thebftonline.com/?p=204960 (also in the Ghanaian Times)
- Raphael Nyarkotey Obu, "Statement on recent media reports regarding TMPC's call for the arrest of Prof. Nyarkotey Obu," Ghanaian Times. https://ghanaiantimes.com.gh/statement-on-recent-media-reports-regarding-tmpcs-call-for-the-arrest-of-prof-nyarkotey-obu
- Business & Financial Times, on his Full Professor confirmation and National Occupational Standards work. https://thebftonline.com/?p=113572
Author has 2161 publications here on modernghana.com
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