UK has introduced a new policy to stop the recruitment of doctors from Nigeria and other developing countries.
However, the policy does not bar doctors from migrating to the UK.
The updated code of practice is expected to affect 47 countries especially Nigeria, which has the third largest number of migrant doctors in the UK.
According to a statement by the UK government titled, ‘UK to strengthen its ethical approach to the international recruitment of health and care workers’, almost all the countries affected are African countries.
The UK said the new policy is in line with the recommendations of the World Health Organization.
Part of the statement read in part, “To align with the WHO, the new code refers to the WHO Health Workforce Support and Safeguard List, 2020 of 47 countries where active recruitment can’t be undertaken.
“This replaces the previous UK-held list of 152 countries and removes confusion which can arise from the UK holding a separate list of countries. UK recruiters are not permitted to actively recruit from these countries unless there is a government to government agreement in place for managed recruitment.”
The countries affected include Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Pakistan, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Vanuatu and Yemen.
