Posted by Chinenye on Thu 13th Aug, 2026 - tori.ng
Nigeria may need about 360,000 doctors to adequately respond to its growing health challenges, a public health expert has warned.
(Doctors. Photo Credit; Nation News)
Nigeria must dramatically expand its health workforce to adequately respond to its disease burden, according to a public health expert addressing the inaugural Biennial Presidential Colloquium of the Academy of Medical Sciences in Lagos.
Distinguished Professor of Public Health Akin Osibogun warned that the shortage of healthcare professionals represents one of the biggest threats to quality healthcare delivery.
Osibogun emphasised that human resources constitute the most critical component of healthcare systems.
The quality of healthcare professionals determines how effectively all other resources are deployed.
Countries with higher densities of health workers record lower maternal, neonatal and child mortality and better overall health outcomes.
Africa shoulders more than 24 per cent of global disease burden but has access to only three per cent of the world's health workforce and less than one per cent of global health expenditure. Nigeria's disparity is particularly acute.
Based on disease burden, Nigeria would require approximately 360,000 doctors roughly eight times the approximately 45,000 currently in practice to provide healthcare commensurate with its health needs.
With a population of approximately 242 million, Nigeria has one doctor for every 5,377 people, compared with one for about 475 people in the United Kingdom, 311 in the United States and 1,010 in India.
Beyond numbers, uneven distribution poses a major challenge. More than 70 per cent of Nigeria's doctors concentrate in Lagos, the Federal Capital Territory, Rivers, Kano and Kaduna, leaving many rural and underserved communities with limited or no access to skilled providers.
Specialist disparities are more pronounced: over 90 per cent of Nigeria's estimated 300 psychiatrists practise in teaching and specialist hospitals, leaving most of the country without resident mental health specialists.
Similar imbalances affect anaesthesia and other disciplines.
Training capacity constrains workforce replenishment. Although Nigeria has 45 accredited medical schools, they graduate fewer than 4,000 doctors yearly.
With modest infrastructure and staffing investment, these institutions could increase annual output to approximately 7,000 doctors.
Major drivers of the shortage include inadequate workforce planning, poor education-health sector coordination, limited training capacity, unattractive remuneration, poor working conditions and continuing migration of healthcare professionals seeking better opportunities abroad.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, speaking through his Permanent Secretary, described Nigeria's health sector as at a critical crossroads.
The country must move beyond familiar responses to recurring health challenges and undertake far-reaching reforms to strengthen the health workforce, improve epidemic preparedness and reduce preventable maternal deaths. Retaining healthcare professionals must receive as much attention as training them.
Creating an environment where professionals can build rewarding careers at home requires better working conditions, continuous professional development, specialisation opportunities, research prospects, appropriate remuneration, modern facilities and professional recognition.
Osibogun's recommendations include expanding medical education infrastructure, improving remuneration for medical teachers, increasing residency and housemanship positions through upgraded general hospitals, licensing more private medical schools under strict quality standards and strengthening collaboration between the Federal Ministries of Health and Education.
Additional priorities include better salaries, improved hospital infrastructure, safer working environments and stronger career progression opportunities to discourage skilled professional migration.
Nigeria would require an additional $540 million yearly approximately $2.80 per person annually to significantly expand health workforce training.
Training a doctor in a private medical school costs at least N24 million, excluding living expenses.
The challenge extends beyond filling vacancies to building a health system capable of responding to Nigeria's enormous disease burden.
Governments at all levels must make sustained investments in recruiting, training, retaining and equitably deploying healthcare professionals across the country.