Ghana is having an imminent bilateral agreement with the British Government to send Ghanaian trained Nurses to the United Kingdom (UK) in exchange for financial considerations, Health Minister, Kwaku Agyemang Manu, has revealed.
He explained that this will be similar to an already existing arrangement with Barbados, where he said Ghanaian nurses are excelling.
Mr. Agyemang Manu made this revelation on Monday, December 5, on the floor of Parliament during the 2023 Budget debate.
“We are engaging with the government of the United Kingdom, and we are just about to sign a memorandum of agreement after cabinet approval to begin to send nurses for training and work there and come back home after three years.
“Ghana is going to benefit from the little money that the UK government will pass on. For every single nurse that goes away, when we finish the agreement, it is likely we will get over 1000 pounds to come and support the health system in Ghana,” according to the MP for Dormaa Central.
In March this year, Barbados received 200 more Ghanaian nurses to complement the staffing needs of the island country.
The Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Motley, in an address expressed her appreciation to the government for extending help to her country’s health sector.
Ghana and Barbados in 2019 signed an agreement for the recruitment of nurses from Ghana.
The agreement, signed at the Jubilee House, when Mia Mottley, paid a courtesy call on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, as part of her official visit to Ghana saw the initial recruitment of over 100 Ghanaian nurses.
There had been concerns over the move, as some had suggested that the nurses could have rather been absorbed into Ghana’s Health Service.
