Nigeria Pushes For Fair Global Health Workforce Deal As Brain Drain Bites Africa
Africa’s worsening shortage of health professionals has again come under sharp focus, with Nigeria calling for a fairer global system that supports countries losing thousands of trained workers to migration.
Speaking at the 2nd Africa Health Workforce Investment Forum in Accra, Ghana, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Iziaq Adekunle Salako reaffirmed the country’s commitment to implementing the Africa Health Workforce Investment Charter through stronger policies, increased investment and accountability.
The minister warned that despite improvements in Africa’s health worker density from 11 per 10,000 people in 2013 to 27 in 2024, the continent could still face a shortage of 6.1 million health workers by 2030 if urgent action is not taken.
Dr Salako disclosed that Nigeria had already approved a National Policy on Health Workforce Migration in August 2024 to tackle the growing exodus of medical personnel.
According to him, the policy focuses on ethical recruitment, diaspora engagement, retention incentives, rural deployment and bilateral agreements, in line with global best practices.
He also revealed that the Federal Government had launched a Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative valued at about 900 million US dollars between 2024 and 2026 to strengthen primary healthcare infrastructure, expand training capacity and deploy community health workers nationwide.
Nigeria further called for a new compact on health workforce mobility, insisting that destination countries benefiting from African-trained professionals should invest in the training systems of source countries.
The minister proposed structured bilateral agreements, compensation mechanisms, joint training programmes and circular migration pathways that would allow health workers to gain international experience and return home with improved skills.
Dr Salako noted that Africa continues to battle declining overseas development assistance, rising public health emergencies and unemployment among skilled health professionals despite severe workforce shortages.
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