The Ministry of Health, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), has commenced a two-day National Policy Dialogue on Ghana’s Health Workforce. The event is being held under the theme: “Transforming Ghana’s Health Workforce for Universal Health Coverage (UHC): Align, Invest, and Sustain.”
The dialogue forms part of the Minister of Health’s vision to engage stakeholders in frank discussions aimed at addressing the growing unemployment rate among qualified health professionals in the country.
Between 2021 and 2023, a strategic partnership between the WHO and the United Kingdom Government, through the Department of Health and Social Care (UK-DHSC), supported Ghana in transforming its health workforce. This partnership aimed to accelerate progress toward achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
As a result of the initiative, over 13,156 healthcare workers — including 5,797 females — across the country benefited from capacity-building programmes designed to enhance their ability to respond to emerging health challenges and strengthen Ghana’s health system.
Speaking at the opening of the policy dialogue, the Minister for Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, stressed the need for decisive action to address the findings of the recent Health Labour Market Analysis — a study supported by the WHO and other development partners.
“Over the last two decades, the Ministry of Health, together with our partners, has made remarkable progress in training and expanding Ghana’s health workforce. Between 2013 and 2022, the density of health workers in the public sector nearly tripled, increasing from 16.56 to 41.92 per 10,000 population,” Hon. Akandoh disclosed.
He described this progress as a significant achievement, highlighting that Ghana has laid a strong foundation toward achieving UHC and other critical health goals.
However, the Minister noted that increasing the number of trained health professionals is only the first step. The real challenge, he emphasized, lies in the effective deployment, equitable distribution, motivation, retention, and long-term sustainability of the health workforce.
Sharing key findings from the Health Labour Market Analysis, the Minister revealed that the study covered nearly 300,000 health workers. Of this number, over 172,000 are employed in the public sector, about 3,000 work in the private sector, while an estimated 118,000 qualified health workers remain unemployed, representing almost 40% of the trained health workforce not currently engaged in active service.
He further indicated that nurses and midwives constitute just over half of the workforce, doctors make up about 3%, pharmacists account for 2.8%, and community health and enrolled nurses represent 32.3%. Alarmingly, only 38% of health workers are stationed in rural areas.
Turning to another critical issue, the Minister expressed concern about the increasing migration of health workers. He disclosed that data indicates nearly two out of every three million health workers are considering leaving the country, with many already initiating the process. Between 2020 and 2022, the number of health workers leaving the country increased by 232%. In the first half of 2023 alone, over 5,000 nurses applied to migrate.
Hon. Akandoh concluded by urging participants — comprising experts and key stakeholders in the health sector — to engage in the dialogue and propose practical and sustainable solutions to address the challenges facing Ghana’s health workforce.
By Madjid Diallo || GhanaNewsOnline