WHO optimistic £2m UK donation will help attract, train, and retain personnel
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Donation of £2 million by the United Kingdom to healthcare delivery in Nigeria has attracted commendation from the World Health Organisation (WHO), which says the fund will enable Nigeria to develop its medical workforce to achieve Universal Health Coverage.
WHO enthused the donation will help Nigeria to optimise the performance, quality, and impact of healthcare personnel through evidence-informed policies and strategies over a two-year period.
The UK explained the fund is meant to boost healthcare personnel recruitment and retention in three African nations – Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana – to support resilience in the face of global health concerns.
Nigeria, like many other countries in the Global South, has difficulty maintaining a resilient health system able to provide quality health services, promote health, and prevent diseases.
The challenges have been further exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic which impacted the availability of health workers to provide quality services across the country.
Richard Montgomery, British High Commissioner to Nigeria, said: “A skilled, well-motivated, and adequate health workforce is critical for Nigeria to #EndPreventableDeaths and build resilience against global threats.
“This UK International Development funding aligns with the Nigerian health workforce strategic plan and will help the country upskill its workers, and improve health outcomes in the long run.”
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Purpose of programme
Per reporting by Tribune, the project aims to
- Support the government at national and sub-national levels and support regulatory bodies, professional associations, and other key stakeholders to develop transformative strategies for scaling up the quantity and quality of health workers, including competency-based curricula development and reviews.
- Align investment in HRH with the current and future needs of the population and health systems.
- Strengthen the capacity of institutions including regulatory bodies for effective public policy stewardship, leadership, and governance.
- Optimise health workers’ retention, equitable distribution, and performance.
- Strengthen the management of health workforce data for monitoring and accountability.
- Implement interventions in Nigeria.
- Draw on the technical capacity of WHO to strengthen health systems including experience of implementing similar projects with appreciable results in the past.
Implementation with a focus on six states of Cross River, Enugu, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, and Lagos, is expected to build on the presence and technical support provided to state governments through the 37 WHO sub-national offices in Nigeria.
“The strength of every health system reflects the capacity and adequacy of its health workforce, which are necessary to deliver quality services to address population health needs,” said WHO Representative in Nigeria Walter Mulombo.
“For a resilient and effective health system, Nigeria must have adequate numbers of health workers who are fit for purpose, motivated to perform, and equitably distributed across the subnational levels to enhance equity in access to their services by the population in need.
“Through the UK government’s generous support through WHO, we will deploy the technical support from the 3 levels of the organisation to support the development of evidence-based policies and strategies, capacity building and management for improved planning and management of Nigeria’s health workforce.”