[2] Other African common names include Congo Bololo (D. R. Congo), ebicha (Oromo), grawa (Amharic), ewuro (Yoruba), etidot (Efik), onugbu (Igbo), ityuna (Tiv), oriwo (Edo), Awɔnwono (Akan), chusar-doki or shuwaka (Hausa), mululuza (Luganda), labwori (Acholi), olusia (Luo), ndoleh (Cameroon), Umubirizi (Kinyarwanda) and olubirizi (Lusoga).

[7][8] In the Northern part of Nigeria, it has been added to horse feed to provide a strengthening or fattening tonic called ‘Chusar Doki’ in Hausa.The leaves have also been used in Ethiopia as hops in preparing tela beer.

The young leaves are used in folk medicine as anthelmintic, antimalarial, laxative/purgative, enema, expectorant, worm expeller and fertility inducer in subfertile women.

Many herbalists and naturopathic doctors have recommended the aqueous extracts for their patients as treatment for emesis, nausea, diabetes, loss of appetite-induced abrosia, dysentery and other gastrointestinal tract problems.

[9] Increasing evidence suggests that the phytochemicals present in the leaves, roots and stem are responsible for the observed anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory properties of the plant.