FG renews vow to tackle brain drain, medical tourism

The federal government says it is renewing its focus to reduce the outflow of Nigerian patients and doctors to facilities outside the country.

Health minister Osagie Ehanire said on Wednesday that one government priority is to “tackle brain drain and medical tourism.”

He spoke as the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria, which trains medical and clinical specialists, marked its 50th anniversary, alongside the convocation of new fellows of the college and its scientific conference in Abuja.

In comments delivered by Abdullahi Mashi, permanent secretary of the federal health ministry, Ehanire said, “Nigeria loses billions [of Naira] to medical tourism each year.”

The theme of the 50th anniversary considers the challenges and prospects of postgraduate medical education in Nigeria.

Ehanire said decisions from the conference should “be made available to government to assist decisions.”

“Your graduates are in high demand all over the world,” he said.

“Our dream toward achieving universal health coverage cannot be complete without you.”

In a guest lecture, Dr Nimi Briggs, an emeritus professor at University of Port Harcourt, said government “has to find a way of stemming brain drain.”

“As a nation, we can’t spend money training doctors only to lose them to other countries with better working conditions.”

In its 50-year history, the college has trained some 7,000 specialists across 16 faculties, and now awards diplomas and fellowship diplomas.

“We are today celebrating the young specialists who believed they could start the training of Nigerians in Nigeria in 1969,” said the college president, Dr O da Lilly-Tarah.

Bolaji Afenifuja, 91, and the last alive of the inaugural board of the college 50 years ago, said, “We in medicine can and will make it despite the difficult circumstances that [professionals] face through no fault of theirs.”