The Minister made a significant announcement on Saturday during a visit to the Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Aro, Abeokuta, Ogun State, regarding measures to address the issue of health workers leaving Nigeria.
He emphasized that the era of health workers exiting the country after applying for a leave of absence is no longer acceptable. This directive stemmed from an executive order issued by President Bola Tinubu as part of efforts to tackle the challenge of brain drain, commonly referred to as the ‘Japa Syndrome,’ affecting the nation’s health sector.
The Minister elaborated, stating, “You cannot eat your cake and have it. If you are going, just resign your appointments with the Federal Government, rather than applying for leave of absence. That is the Presidential executive order that has been communicated to all the Chief Medical Directors of Federal Government-owned health facilities to implement.”
He highlighted the issue with health workers being abroad, still appearing on the government’s payroll, which makes replacement difficult and burdens colleagues left behind. To address this, the President directed that health workers going abroad to work should resign their appointments rather than applying for leave of absence.
Furthermore, the Minister revealed that the Federal Government has initiated measures to bolster manpower in the health sector. The annual enrolment of nurses, which previously stood at 28,000, has been increased to 68,000, with plans to raise it to 120,000 by the end of the year.
He emphasized the government’s awareness of the impact of brain drain on the health sector and reiterated the commitment to ensuring an abundant supply of skilled manpower to fill vacancies left by those departing from their roles.