Speakers at a three-day forum on the retention of African health workforce have called for deliberate and practical measures to address systemic challenges affecting retention of the workforce.
They said there was the need for sustainable employment and improved conditions of service for health professionals.
The forum, which opened in Accra yesterday, brought together policymakers, health leaders, development partners and experts who are deliberating on practical solutions to address health workforce challenges in Africa.
It is being held on the theme: “Investing, planning, training and retaining health workers”.
Retention deficit
The Vice-President, Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, said retention deficit continued to undermine investment in the health sector, thus, weakening healthcare delivery and slowing progress towards universal health coverage.
She said the retention gap pointed to deeper structural challenges within health systems which must be confronted collectively.
Prof. Opoku-Agyemang urged countries to move beyond planning and training to ensuring that health workers were deployed effectively, employed sustainably and retained with dignity.
She also said that although life expectancy and service coverage in the WHO African Region had improved over the years, factors such as access, cost and distance continued to limit healthcare for many people.
“Sovereignty in health refers to our capacity to define our own health priorities, mobilise sustainable domestic financing, train health workers we need, retain our talent, strengthen our institutions, and organise services around our own defined realities,” Prof. Opoku-Agyemang said.
She added that cooperation with international partners must align with Africa’s priorities to support long-term sustainability.
National outlook
The Vice-President said the government had introduced key interventions to improve access to healthcare and strengthen the workforce.
She mentioned the rollout of free primary healthcare and the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, which seeks to support specialised treatment and improve service delivery.
“We have authorised the recruitment of about 16,000 health workers this year. About half of them have already been given financial clearance and the others will soon follow,” Prof. Opoku-Agyeman said.
“I wish all of you to leave Accra resolved to turn evidence into policy, then into investment, and finally into measurable positive change,” Prof. Opoku-Agyeman said
The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, said the forum was a critical step towards translating commitments into concrete results, saying Africa must move beyond policy discussions to implementation.
“This is a call to move from declaration to delivery, from plans to investment, and from commitment to measurable results,” he added.
The minister said investment in the health workforce was not only a sectoral issue but a foundation for universal health coverage, economic growth and resilience on the continent.
He said the country was developing a national health workforce development plan to position investment in human resources as a national priority, while strengthening collaboration across sectors.
He added that the focus was not only on increasing numbers but ensuring equitable distribution and long-term sustainability of the workforce.
The Minister of Labour, Jobs and Employment, Dr Rashid Pelpuo, said the continent was projected to record a deficit of about 6.1 million health workers by 2030 if urgent steps were not taken and, therefore, added that “investment in Africa’s health workforce is non-negotiable”.
“As stakeholders, we must be fully cognizant of these realities and place premium on promoting occupational safety and health, decent work, and social dialogue,” he said.
Collaboration
The WHO Regional Director for Africa, Prof Mohamed Yakub Janabi, also called for fair and balanced global partnerships to address the growing migration of African health professionals.
He said while Africa continued to train large numbers of health workers, many were leaving the continent, creating gaps in already fragile health systems.
“This is not a shortage of effort. This is not a shortage of talent. This is a system under strain,” he said.
