A research fact-checking organisation says the number of Nigerian doctors registering to work in the UK has increased by 10 per cent in the last one year.
According to Africa Check, since June last year, an average of 12 qualified Nigerian doctors signed up to work in the UK every week.
The organisation claimed the number is double what it was in previous years.
According to BBC News, Africa Check looked at doctors signing up with the General Medical Council in the UK and found this sharp increase.
In the five years before 2016, around 200 Nigerian doctors registered in the UK annually. In 2017, that number jumped to 439.
It’s not clear why the numbers increased so rapidly. A brain drain of this kind is a huge challenge for health systems in Africa.
Nigeria went through a recession in 2016 and a 10-day doctor’s strike over unpaid wages in September 2017 is no doubt a push factor.
But most of these medics would have left before that point. Only those who make it into the registry are counted in these numbers.
It’s likely many other Nigerian doctors have moved to the UK but are yet to be registered or are working in other fields.
