NMA seeks better pay, safer hospitals to retain doctors
The Nigerian Medical Association has urged state governments to improve doctors’ welfare, pay, and hospital security to stem the migration of professionals Read More:…
The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) is the umbrella body representing medical and dental practitioners in Nigeria, and has long served as the profession's main voice on welfare, training and working conditions in the country's public health system. Its renewed call comes against the backdrop of "japa" — the sustained emigration of Nigerian doctors to countries such as the UK, US, Canada and Saudi Arabia in search of better pay, equipment and safer working environments, a trend health authorities and training institutions have repeatedly flagged as a threat to an already doctor-to-patient ratio far below World Health Organisation recommendations.
The coverage is consistent in its core message: the NMA wants both federal and state governments to raise doctors' pay to internationally competitive levels and to make hospitals safer workplaces, as a way of stemming further departures. Punch frames the appeal as directed at state governments, with an emphasis on welfare and hospital security, while Vanguard casts it as addressed to the Federal Government, highlighting remuneration and working conditions more broadly. Neither report details specific salary figures, timelines, or commitments from government officials in response, leaving open how — or whether — the demands will translate into policy.