Nigeria faces shortage of 122,696 primary healthcare workers – FG

The Federal Government says it requires an estimated N4.55 billion over three years to recruit 122,696 health workers needed to fill vacant positions in Primary Health Care (PHC) facilities across 26 states nationwide.

The Human Resource for Health and Project Management Lead at the Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) Coordination Office, Zaiyanatu Umar, disclosed this on Friday in Abuja during the 15th Expanded Ministerial Oversight Committee meeting on national healthcare implementation.

Umar said the estimate followed an analysis of baseline data submitted by 26 verified states that self-reported staffing levels against Primary Health Care Minimum Staffing Standards under the SWAp recruitment assessment exercise.

“The baseline data received from SWAp was based on the recruitment tool that was developed.

“This was majorly to push forth on the HOPE-GOV 5.2 Disbursement-Linked Indicator (DLI), which spoke around ensuring quality healthcare workforce and availability across the different levels,” she said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the World Bank-supported HOPE-GOV Programme rewards states for improving governance, financial management, and service delivery across Primary Health Care and basic education systems nationwide.

Under Disbursement-Linked Indicator 5.2, participating states focus on recruiting, mapping, and deploying essential Primary Health Care workers to underserved communities, thereby strengthening equitable access to quality healthcare services across Nigeria.

She said assessments showed that 220,755 Primary Health Care positions were required across participating states, but only 98,059 were occupied, leaving 122,696 vacancies requiring urgent recruitment to improve healthcare delivery nationwide.

Umar added that participating states averaged 7.5 Primary Health Care workers per 10,000 population, while 55.6 per cent of required staffing positions remained vacant across surveyed facilities.

She said the South East recorded the most severe staffing shortages, with a 73 per cent workforce gap and only 1.9 Primary Health Care workers per 10,000 population across assessed facilities.

According to her, the North West followed with a 70.9 per cent workforce gap and 5.8 workers per 10,000 population, while the South West recorded a 59.3 per cent staffing deficit.

She said the North Central recorded a moderate workforce gap of 49.5 per cent, with eight Primary Health Care workers available for every 10,000 population across participating states during the assessment.

Umar added that the South South recorded a 46.8 per cent staffing gap, while the North East posted a 33.9 per cent deficit, highlighting persistent shortages across Nigeria’s healthcare system.

“South East facilities are thinly staffed on every available measure, unlike the North where state and LGA payrolls add staff.”

She, however, explained that the staffing gap calculations excluded 13 states, while the Performance Management Task Team was finalising a Human Resource for Health scorecard to strengthen accountability and performance.

The National Emergency Medical Treatment Committee Coordinator, Dr Emuren Doubra, said N2.41 billion had been disbursed to states and federal tertiary health facilities for emergency treatment interventions since 2023.

Doubra said the intervention had benefited more than 130,000 patients, while the National Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance System disbursed N1.49 billion to tertiary health facilities between January 2023 and May 2026.

He said third-quarter priorities include expanding emergency medical operations from 32 states to all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, alongside wider emergency response coverage across underserved communities.

According to Doubra, the committee also plans to increase Rapid Emergency Services and Medical Ambulance Teams coverage from 139 Local Government Areas to 172 Local Government Areas before year-end.

Executive Director of the Country Coordinating Mechanism, Dr Ibrahim Tajudeen, said Nigeria had submitted its Global Fund Grant Cycle Eight funding request for review under ongoing health financing reforms.

Tajudeen said the Global Fund allocated 791.6 million dollars for Grant Cycle Eight, compared with 933.1 million dollars under the current Grant Cycle Seven funding arrangement for Nigeria’s health programmes.

He said the funding reduction informed reforms aimed at improving efficiency, reducing duplication, and strengthening integration across HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria programmes, while enhancing government ownership and coordination.

According to him, Nigeria reduced the number of principal grant recipients from seven to five to strengthen coordination, increase government ownership, and improve accountability in programme implementation across health interventions.

He said the grant prioritised alignment with the Sector-Wide Approach, health insurance expansion, stronger supply chains, local pharmaceutical manufacturing, and broader health systems strengthening to improve service delivery sustainably.

Tajudeen added that Nigeria earmarked 42.8 million dollars from disease-specific allocations to strengthen health systems over the next three years through integrated healthcare investments and improved service delivery.

He said Nigeria adopted integrated approaches covering laboratory services, commodity distribution, disease surveillance, community engagement, and health financing to strengthen sustainability and improve long-term healthcare outcomes across the country.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Basic Health Care Provision Fund remains Nigeria’s flagship financing mechanism supporting expanded access to quality Primary Health Care and advancing Universal Health Coverage nationwide.

The Ministerial Oversight Committee remains the highest governing and policy-making body responsible for managing, supervising, and implementing the Basic Health Care Provision Fund across Nigeria in line with its statutory responsibilities. (NAN)