Health workforce - Nigeria Health System and Services Profile

Chapter 4 of AHOP's Nigeria Health Systems and Services Profile.

Nigeria’s health workforce is one of the largest in Africa. The provision of doctors, nurses and midwives is above regional averages, but below the threshold recommended by the World Health Organization. The workforce increased between 2010 and 2021, but not at a fast enough rate to meet demand.
Strategic coordination of the health workforce by the government is lacking, resulting in staff shortages and an uneven distribution of the skilled health workforce across the country.
Staff capacity and competence shortages, industrial unrest and poor remuneration and working conditions, especially in the public health sector, have had knock-on effects on clinical outcomes and reduced public confidence in the health workforce.
Retaining health workers is a significant challenge, with health professionals moving from rural to urban areas or out of the country, attracted by higher remuneration packages and better working conditions.
A workforce information management system to help identify gaps and plan and implement existing policies and strategies is much needed. Data on the distribution of the health workforce by cadre, gender and facility are currently mostly unavailable.
Health workforce challenges could be addressed by strengthening governance and management at and between the national and subnational levels, improving training and retraining programmes, and using research evidence to improve practice and staff retention.

Health workforce – Nigeria Health System and Services Profile