Japa: Over 16,000 Nigerian Doctors Move for Greener Pastures in 5 Years, Reveals Pate

Prof. Muhammad Pate, Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, has disclosed that over 16,000 Nigerian doctors emigrated to other nations over the past five or seven years in search of greener pastures.

This massive departure has left Nigeria with a severe health professional shortage, a country of over 200 million citizens.

During a recent press conference, Prof. Pate observed the new trend of Nigerian doctors seeking to practice in other countries, with many of them migrating to such countries with more established healthcare systems and better offers of pay.

He described such migration as part of today’s “Japa Syndrome,” a popular expression used to describe the mass exit of skilled Nigerians in search of better working and living conditions overseas.

As Prof. Pate explained, nearly 16,000 physicians have left Nigeria in the last five years alone, further worsening an already healthcare crisis in the nation.

With one of the most populous nations in Africa, Nigeria now faces a severe shortage of health professionals, and there are only about 55,000 licensed doctors remaining in the nation to serve the huge population.

The emigration has been strongest towards the United Kingdom, where an estimated 67% of Nigerian doctors in the diaspora reside.

As a matter of fact, Nigerian-trained doctors make up approximately 25% of the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) employees, which points to the pivotal role these medical physicians play in the host nations’ healthcare system.

The emigration of health workers is not just a loss to Nigeria but also an indicator of the brain drain of many developing nations, where skilled professionals emigrate in search of better opportunities.

Nigeria, whose healthcare infrastructure is already strained, has experienced the effects of this emigration in the form of an increasing gap in healthcare delivery across the country.

In response to this alarming trend, the Nigerian government has devised a new strategy to address the migration of healthcare professionals.

The National Policy on Health Workforce Migration, introduced by the Ministry of Health, aims to halt the migration of medical doctors out of the country.

The policy is to improve the working conditions of doctors in Nigeria by offering competitive incentives, renewing healthcare infrastructure, and boosting the return of doctors trained and practiced abroad.

The government will also facilitate the re-entry of Nigerian-trained doctors to make it attractive for them to return home and practice within the country’s healthcare system.

The government aims to address the root causes of the brain drain, namely low pay, inferior healthcare facilities, and a lack of opportunity for professional advancement.

By ensuring better working conditions and higher incentives, the government aims to retain its health personnel and stem the brain drain.

Among the key issues highlighted by Prof. Pate is the uneven distribution of healthcare practitioners in Nigeria. Nearly 40% of registered doctors in Nigeria reside in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Lagos State, while rural communities are left woefully un-served.

This imbalance of medical practitioners has brought a colossal burden in seeking health care services, particularly for residents in rural and far-flung communities.

To reverse this imbalance, the government is making plans for the even spread of physicians across the country. Initiatives will include targeted incentives for physicians to work in under-served areas and greater investment in healthcare centers in such areas.

As Nigeria’s healthcare system struggles to meet the demands of its growing population, the government’s response to the flight of doctors and the disparity in access to healthcare will play a critical role in shaping the future of the sector. The government’s ability to retain and hire healthcare professionals will determine the success of efforts to develop a robust healthcare system, reduce the burden on hospitals, and make quality healthcare accessible to all Nigerians.

The “Japa Syndrome” and flight of doctors are grave problems requiring immediate attention. If drastic measures are not taken, the country can expect continued deterioration in its health care delivery system, with potentially disastrous consequences for public health.