Yemi Obafemi
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, said the government is working towards providing conducive environment for health practitioners in the country.
He disclosed this while speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday.
According to Pate, 67% of Nigerian doctors practice in United Kingdom, and the National Health Service (NHS) would likely face significant challenges in delivering essential services, as many Nigerians play a crucial role in the healthcare system.
The Minister said: “UK will need Nigerian doctors. 67% of our doctors go to the United Kingdom, and 25% of the NHIS workforce is Nigerian.
“The recruitment countries that recruit our professionals, should they not have some responsibilities to help us expand the training? Because the strain of health workers’ migration is continuous, it’s not going to stop tomorrow.
“Does the UK, for instance, want to consider expanding the 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 get.
“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.”
