By Akinnodi Francis, Ondo
A University don, Professor Adesola Ogunfowokan, has cautioned that the continuous migration of Nigerian nurses abroad poses a serious threat to the nation’s health sector, warning that the trend could drastically weaken the nurse-to-population ratio by 2030.
Prof. Ogunfowokan, who is the Head, Department of Nursing Science, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, made the disclosure during the 5th induction ceremony of the University of Medical Sciences (UNIMED), Ondo.
Speaking on the theme, “Nigerian Nurses’ Migration: Brain Drain or Brain Gain,” she described brain drain as “the emigration of a nation’s most highly skilled individuals,” lamenting that the Nigerian health system continues to lose its best professionals to foreign countries.
She listed the major causes of brain drain to include low wages, limited opportunities, lack of resources to work effectively, an unstable economy, poor working conditions, underfunded healthcare systems, better career prospects, higher income, attractive employment contracts and improved safety standards abroad.
Highlighting the scale of the crisis, Ogunfowokan revealed that about 75,000 nurses left the country in 2017, 7,256 between 2021 and 2022, and 42,000 between 2022 and 2024. She warned that if the trend continues amid population growth, “the African and Eastern Mediterranean regions will see little to no growth in their nurse-to-population ratio between 2023 and 2030.”
While noting that migration of nurses is not entirely negative, the don pointed out that the global mobility of health professionals can bring potential benefits such as research collaborations, remittances to families and alma maters, health screening initiatives, and partnerships between foreign and Nigerian institutions.
However, she lamented that, “ever since nurses have been migrating, the so-called gains have not really been evident in the country.”
Earlier in her welcome address, the Vice-Chancellor of UNIMED, Professor Ebunoluwa Adejuyigbe, represented by Professor Ezekiel Adebayo, congratulated the inductees and urged them to uphold the university’s values in their professional endeavours.
“As you go into the world, please represent the institution well and uphold the values UNIMED holds dear,” she said.
Also speaking, the Dean, Faculty of Nursing, UNIMED, Professor Abimbola Oluwatosin, noted that nursing has become one of the most sought-after professions globally, stressing that migration among nurses is inevitable.
The event featured the administration of oaths and bows by the representative of the Secretary-General, Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, Dr. Dorothea Ore.
There were also awards presentations by the National President of UGONSA, Mr. Opeyemi Ojo, and the professional decoration of inductees led by Comrade Orobode.