The United Kingdom government has announced a £15 million financial commitment aimed at supporting healthcare personnel recruitment and retention in Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria.
The amount from the dedicated Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget for the 2022–2025 period will be allocated to enhance, build, and reinforce the healthcare workforce in the aforementioned countries.
According to the UK government’s official website, this funding recognizes the vital role of the healthcare workforce in low- and middle-income countries in improving health outcomes and achieving universal health coverage. The goal is to ensure that individuals in Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana have access to a comprehensive range of healthcare services when needed.
It has been emphasized that the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for the UK to collaborate closely with international partners to address global health threats. This has put significant pressure on the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), and the pandemic has exacerbated challenges related to retaining healthcare workers worldwide, all while the demand for healthcare personnel has surged.
Furthermore, it was highlighted that effectively addressing critical workforce issues is essential for strengthening healthcare systems and improving global preparedness for future pandemics. This is crucial to ensure the safety and well-being of people worldwide, including those in the UK.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has projected a shortage of 10 million healthcare workers globally by 2030. This shortage poses a threat to achieving universal health coverage on a global scale and has the potential to worsen health inequalities worldwide.
According to the UK’s Health Minister, Will Quince, highly skilled and resilient healthcare staff are the backbone of a robust healthcare service.
“So I’m delighted we can support the training, recruitment and retention of skilled health workforces in Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana.”
Mr Will clarified that the main goal of the funding is to make a meaningful difference in bolstering the efficiency of healthcare systems within each of the participating countries. This, in effect, will play a part in enhancing global preparedness for pandemic response and reducing disparities in healthcare access.
“The pandemic showed us that patients in the UK are not safe unless the world as a whole is resilient against health threats, and this will help us in delivering on that ambition.”
As part of this endeavor, the Department of Health and Social Care will administer a competitive grant scheme totaling £9 million over two years, designated for a non-profit organization. This organization will oversee partnership efforts in these countries, facilitating connections between UK institutions and local healthcare systems, promoting skill exchanges, and enhancing educational curricula, regulations, and guidelines within the mentioned African nations.
The selected organization to manage and fund these initiatives is the Tropical Health and Education Trust (THET). Their responsibility will be to drive enhancements in the quality and retention of healthcare personnel in Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana, ultimately aiming to deliver improved healthcare outcomes for patients.
This funding builds upon a prior commitment of £5 million in Ghana, Uganda, and Somaliland, geared towards enhancing health workforce planning, offering training opportunities for refugees and displaced individuals, and fostering collaborations between NHS institutions and local healthcare establishments.
These countries were chosen for funding due to the substantial challenges they face in their healthcare workforce, including high mortality rates and shortages of adequately trained healthcare professionals, leading to unemployment among qualified health practitioners.
This initiative is part of the broader £15 million Global Health Workforce Programme, introduced on May 19, 2023, designed to address these issues and elevate healthcare systems in these countries.