Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh has cautioned that Ghana could face an unemployment crisis in the health sector, with as many as 180,000 trained professionals (nurses and midwives) remaining jobless by the end of 2028, if urgent measures are not implemented to address the growing backlog.
Speaking on Channel One TV, the Minister disclosed that the country currently has about 74,000 unemployed health workers, a figure that continues to rise as new graduates enter the system each year
“By the end of 2026, we will have an additional 23,000. By the end of 2027, we will have an additional 35,000. By the end of 2028, we will have about 47,000. So by the end of 2028, if we don’t employ anybody, this 74,000 is still outstanding — we will have not less than 180,000 trained and they will be at home,” he explained.
Akandoh said the government is developing a gradual recruitment plan alongside international partnerships to manage the increasing number of trained but jobless health professionals particularly nurses.
“So there is a strategy going forward. What we are seeking to do now is that gradually, the government will be employing some of them as we move along,” he noted.
He added that the Ministry is exploring a “managed migration” framework that would allow qualified Ghanaian health professionals to work abroad under bilateral arrangements.
“We are also looking at what we call managed migration — how we will be able to export some of them. About 13 countries have responded, but the difficulty is that most of these countries that have responded need a specialist,” he revealed.
The Minister further stated that clearing the current backlog of unemployed health workers would require no less than GH¢6 billion annually.
His remarks come amid increasing agitation from unemployed nurses and midwives demanding postings, and growing criticism from the Minority in Parliament over what they describe as government’s slow response to the worsening employment situation in the health sector.
