By Chinedu Echianu
The Medical and Health Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MHWUN) has urged the Federal Government to improve workers’ welfare, increase healthcare funding and provide better working conditions to stem the exodus of skilled health professionals.
This is as the union blamed poor remuneration, inadequate funding and unsafe working environments for the growing migration of health workers.
MHWUN President, Comrade Kabiru Sani-Minjibir, made the call in Abuja at the union’s 52nd National Executive Council meeting.
He said Nigeria is losing qualified health professionals at an alarming rate, citing figures showing that only about 55,000 of the more than 130,000 registered doctors are practising in the country.
He also said more than 57,000 Nigerian nurses have left the country within five years, warning that the trend is reducing access to quality healthcare.
Minjibir said health workers are leaving in response to poor welfare and working conditions, rather than out of disloyalty to the country.
He expressed concern that the N2.48 trillion allocated to health in the 2026 budget represented less than five per cent of the national budget, far below Nigeria’s 15 per cent commitment under the Abuja Declaration.
The union president also called for improved workers’ wages and palliatives, saying the rising cost of food, transportation, housing and energy continued to erode workers’ purchasing power.
On the lingering welfare dispute, Minjibir accused the Federal Government of failing to implement the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) adjustment as agreed with the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU).
He recalled that the government had promised to implement the adjustment in April 2026 following the suspension of JOHESU’s 84-day strike on February 5.
He said the union is also demanding outstanding arrears for its members, including workers in non-hospital-based health institutions, and the inauguration of governing boards of federal health institutions.
Minjibir warned that the delays could trigger another strike, stressing that the previous industrial action had only been suspended, not abandoned.
He urged the Ministers of Health and Labour to intervene to prevent another disruption, adding that the union was awaiting further directives from the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress.
On the 2027 general election, the MHWUN president urged political parties and candidates to prioritise health workers’ welfare and the revitalisation of the healthcare system.
He said the union would not endorse any political party or candidate but would push for the health workers’ agenda, regardless of who wins the election.
