The Federal Government has said no fewer than 67 per cent of Nigerian doctors practice in the United Kingdom.
Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, who made this known on Tuesday, said Nigerian-trained doctors and nurses are in high demand worldwide and the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) would be greatly impacted if Nigerian doctors withdraw and return home.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme, Pate said the newly approved National Policy on Health Workforce Migration by President Bola Tinubu is aimed at addressing the mass migration of health professionals from Nigeria.
Earlier in March, the Minister said Nigeria now has only 55,000 licensed doctors to serve its growing population of over 200 million.
According to Pate, 16,000 doctors left the country in the last five years and about 17,000 have been transferred. He, however, suggested that countries recruiting Nigerian health professionals should also contribute to expanding training opportunities in Nigeria.
“The strain of health workers migration is continuous; it’s not going to stop tomorrow. The UK will continue to need Nigerian doctors. Does the UK, for instance, want to consider expanding pre-service education? Can we have corridors that allow us to have a compact that ‘you’ll take so but you will also help us train more so you will replace them’? That is in the realm of health diplomacy and ethical replacement.
“Nigerians are very vibrant, very entrepreneurial, and very capable wherever they are. If Nigerians hold back from the UK, for instance, the NHS will struggle to provide the services that many Nigerians are going there to do,” he said.
Noting that the government cannot restrict the freedom of movement, Pate emphasised that efforts will be made to create a more conducive environment for health workers to remain and practice in Nigeria.
“We’re not stopping anyone from leaving. We’re accepting that migration is here to stay—people will leave, some will come back, and some will migrate here from elsewhere. You’re free to leave, but we will work on making the environment more conducive, to make you more likely to stay than leave, and to attract/incentivise those who’ve left to come back,” he said.
