WHO said with the impact of COVID-19 and widespread disruptions to health services, health workers in the identified countries continued to seek better-paid opportunities in wealthier nations.
The WHO said of the 55 countries, 37 are in Africa, eight are in the Western Pacific region, six are in the Eastern Mediterranean region, three are in Southeast Asia and one is in the Americas.
Thereafter, the UK government on March 23 placed Nigeria and 53 other countries on the red list of countries that should not be actively targeted for recruitment by health and social care employers.
However, the NMC report stated that the number of first-time joiners across the UK continued to rise, with nearly 60,000 new nursing and midwifery professionals registering with it this year alone.
It added that the figures were split almost equally between UK-educated joiners (30,363) and those educated internationally (29,628).
It stated, “The year-on-year growth was even higher among international joiners, which shows an increase of more than 18 per cent compared to the previous year. Almost half (14,615) of this year’s new joiners were educated in India.”
In 2023, the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives said over 75,000 nurses and midwives left the country in five years to seek greener pastures.
The mass exodus of nurses has worsened an ongoing shortage of health workers, and poses significant threats to the healthcare delivery system, leading to limited access to care for many people.
Source: Punch News
