There are enough medical doctors in system – Osagie Ehanire says

Osagie Ehanire, Nigeria’s Minister of Health, has said that there are enough medical doctors in the country.

He stated this during a media conference in Abuja on Tuesday, August 23.  He said this while dismissing reports of an embargo on the employment of doctors and other health personnel in the country.

“There is no embargo on employing doctors; where there is a need, we do. But, because there is a civil service regulation, there are processes before doctors are employed.

We have heard complaints of doctors who are now leaving the system but there are actually enough doctors in the system because we are producing up to 2,000 or 3,000 doctors every year in the country, and the number leaving is less than 1,000.

It is just that the employment process needs to be smoothened.”

Ehanire said the ministry was working with the office of the head of the civil service to use the ‘one-for-one’ employment strategy so that if one doctor or nurse resigns to go abroad another one is employed.