If all goes as planned, Uganda will soon be exporting skilled medical professionals to the United Kingdom. In view of that, a professional body, Uganda Nurses and Midwives Union (UNMU) has said plans were on to send some of its members abroad.
President of UNMU, Justus Cherop revealed that about 3,000 well-skilled nurses who were not employed by the government worked abroad, amid plans by some labour companies in the country to send nurses to work in the United Kingdom and the Middle East.
“We have about 5,000 nurses graduating from institutions and universities every year. The government can absorb around 2,000 every financial year,” Cherop said.
“We are looking for labour export companies so that those who are not employed can find work abroad,” he added.
According to Cherop, in order to efficiently serve the populace and lower hospital fatalities, the nation needs to hire 55,000 nurses. He claimed that out of the 62,000 qualified nurses and midwives in Uganda, the government now employs 28,000.
The health industry in Uganda has advanced significantly over the past ten years. Male life expectancy at birth increased from 45.7 to 62.2 years, while female life expectancy increased from 50.5 to 66.7 years between 1991 and 2019.
Moreover, Uganda achieved one of the global MDG goals for child health from 1990 to 2015, but its health personnel are far from surplus, raising questions about the proposed exportation of medical staff.