While Nigerian doctors are currently on strike over the refusal of the Federal Government to honour its agreement on payment of salaries and other benefits, the Government of the United Kingdom has registered at least 353 Nigerian doctors in three months.
These doctors make up the number of local doctors who left the country for better working conditions in countries where their services are appreciated.
A look at the website of the General Medical Council, the body responsible for licensing and maintaining the official register of medical practitioners in the UK, revealed that at least 353 Nigerian-trained doctors were licensed by the GMC between June 10, 2021, and September 20, 2021.
The statistics on the website showed that about 862 Nigeria-trained doctors were licensed in the UK between July 24, 2020, and September 21, 2021, even in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that, in total, 8, 737 doctors, who obtained their degrees in Nigeria, currently practise in the UK.
WHAT THIS MEANS:
- This development shows that the Nigerian government does not prioritize the country’s healthcare sectors.
- The Vice-President of the National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD), Julian Ojebo, noted Nigerian doctors are poorly remunerated; a development that has forced the doctors out of the country.
- Ojebo also revealed that the figure of those leaving the country would double as the days go by and those going to Saudi Arabia may surpass the figure in the UK.
Ojebo, in a statement, said:
“I can tell you categorically that some of the issues we are fighting for are matters that should have been addressed since 2014 and we are still protesting in 2021. Like we have always said, whatever you earn in Nigeria, you stand the opportunity of earning three times that amount with better working conditions.”
Meanwhile, resident doctors have continued their strike amid rising COVID-19 and cholera infections.
