Over 10,000 Nigerians Now Working in UK NHS as Nigeria Battles Health Worker Shortage
Mirian Gom 
ABUJA, Nigeria – More than 10,494 Nigerians are listed among staff in the United Kingdom’s National Health Service (NHS), according to data shared by NHS Million, a UK campaign organisation focused on NHS staff.
Nigeria ranked sixth overall in the nationality breakdown, behind the UK/British, India, the Philippines, Ireland and Poland, making Nigerians the largest African nationality represented on the list.
Data shared by NHS Million showed that more than 1.1 million NHS workers identified as British or UK nationals.
India accounted for 32,117 staff, while the Philippines had 25,423.
Among African countries, Zimbabwe recorded 4,780 NHS staff, followed by Ghana with 3,395, Egypt with 2,895 and South Africa with 1,829.
The 2025 State of Health of the Nation Report, released by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, showed that more than 20,000 Nigerian health workers relocated abroad within one year.
The figure included 3,919 doctors, 7,487 nurses and midwives, 6,861 medical laboratory professionals, 702 pharmacists, 658 physiotherapists and 274 dentists, among other health professionals.
The report also showed that Nigeria has 95,456 registered doctors, but only 60,551 currently hold active practising licences.
The shortage is further worsened by the uneven distribution of health professionals, with several northern states recording particularly low doctor densities.
Data from the UK’s General Medical Council showed that 4,691 Nigerian-trained doctors joined the UK medical register between May 2023 and April 2026, according to a Punch report.
The data also showed that 15,896 Nigerian-trained doctors were licensed to practise in the UK.
The 2025 State of Health of the Nation Report identified external migration as one of the factors affecting the availability of health professionals in Nigeria.
The Federal Government has introduced measures aimed at increasing Nigeria’s health workforce and addressing health worker migration.
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