Ribadu Laments Continuous Migration Of Health Workers Abroad, Offers Provisional Licence To Jigawa Medical Varsity

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Innocent Oweh

Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof.Abdullahi Ribadu has lamented the spate of Nigerian medical professionals migrating abroad with their skills.

While describing the trend as worrisome, he said the development accounts for efforts by the federal government to boost doctor to population ratio through expanding access.

Ribadu lamented the situation on Thursday, while offering provisional licence to the Jigawa State University of Medical and Allied Sciences, recognising it as the 70th state-owned university in the country.

The Jigawa State government acquired an existing private university and converted it into a public institution and approached the NUC for approval to commence academic programmes.

The NUC Scribe said the university would expand access to quality medical education and address healthcare workforce shortages.

“Nigeria’s doctor-to-population ratio remained significantly below the World Health Organisation’s recommended benchmark, a challenge worsened by the migration of healthcare professionals to other countries.

“The establishment of additional medical institutions remains critical to producing the healthcare personnel required to meet the country’s growing healthcare needs.

“Today’s recognition is an important one, not only for Jigawa, but also for the Nigerian university system.

“There is no doubt that Nigeria faces a serious shortage of healthcare professionals. Our doctor-to-population ratio remains far below the World Health Organization’s recommended benchmark.

“The situation is being compounded by the continued migration of medical personnel to other countries. So, in terms of the figures, if you see the doctor-to-population ratio, there may be issues.

“Some is one to 4,000, 3,500, and the figures that you see from the WHO is one to 4,000. So it’s really a problem,” Ribadu noted.

He acknowledged the efforts of the Jigawa State Government which has been working closely with the commission throughout the acquisition process to ensure compliance with relevant regulatory requirements.

He said that the commission would formally notify the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), TETFund, NYSC, NELFund and other agencies of the university’s new status.