The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, has announced that the newly approved National Policy on Health Workforce Migration is set to help bring back Nigerian healthcare professionals, including doctors, who are currently practicing abroad.
This comes in response to the Federal Government’s approval of the policy aimed at addressing the ongoing exodus of Nigerian doctors seeking better opportunities overseas.
In a post shared on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle on Monday, Pate reaffirmed the government’s commitment to tackling the healthcare human resource challenges facing the country.
He revealed that President Bola Tinubu had signed off on the policy during a Federal Executive Council meeting at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
“This policy goes beyond addressing the brain drain of healthcare professionals,” Pate stated. “It is a comprehensive plan to manage, harness, and reverse the migration of health workers.
We aim to build a robust workforce that is well-supported, fairly compensated, and effectively utilized to meet the healthcare demands of all Nigerians.”
The minister emphasized that the policy introduces streamlined registration processes and attractive incentives to encourage Nigerian healthcare professionals to return home.
It also focuses on reintegrating them into the nation’s health system, leveraging their expertise to fill critical gaps.
Additionally, Pate highlighted the policy’s emphasis on forging reciprocal agreements with other countries to ensure a fair exchange of health workers, benefiting Nigeria.
He called on recipient countries to implement a “1:1 match” initiative, where for every publicly trained Nigerian healthcare worker they employ, they train one to replace them in Nigeria.
The policy also prioritizes the well-being of healthcare professionals by promoting work-life balance, offering mental health support, and ensuring reasonable working hours, particularly for younger doctors.
These measures aim to reduce burnout and improve job satisfaction across the sector.
Following Monday’s announcement, Pate reiterated on Tuesday that the policy is a robust strategy to address the critical issues surrounding Nigeria’s healthcare workforce.
He pointed to President Tinubu’s role as the African Union Champion for Human Resources for Health and Community Health Delivery Partnership as further evidence of Nigeria’s commitment to building a resilient and efficient healthcare system.
Many Nigerian healthcare workers have left the country due to inadequate equipment, worsening insecurity, poor working conditions, and unsatisfactory pay.
The new policy seeks to address these issues and incentivize healthcare professionals to return to Nigeria, creating a more sustainable health sector for the future.
