Africa needs 35% more to recruit health workers as 1 in 5 health dollars is wasted – WHO
African countries need to increase their health workforce recruitment budgets by an average of 35% if they are to employ more health workers, while one in every five dollars spent on health in Africa is lost through waste and inefficiency, a World Health Organization health workforce expert has said. Health Workforce Team Leader at the […]
African nations need to allocate an additional 35% of their health workforce recruitment budgets to ensure they have enough medical professionals, according to a World Health Organization (WHO) expert. Dr. James Avoka Asamani, Health Workforce Team Leader at the WHO, made this statement during a recent Zoom interview. One in every five dollars spent on health in Africa is currently lost due to waste and inefficiency, exacerbating the problem further.
The WHO's Africa Health Workforce Agenda 2026-2035 aims to train, employ and retain at least three million additional health workers by 2035. However, the shortage of health workers remains a significant issue, with the continent currently having only about 46% of the professionals it needs. The problem is largely caused by a lack of coordination between training programs and job creation, leading to a mismatch between the number of trained professionals and available positions.
To address this, governments should link health education with job creation, and the private sector encouraged to hire trained health workers. Reducing inefficiencies in existing health funds could also create more resources for recruitment.
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