The World Health Organisation (WHO) says Africa is training more health workers than ever before, yet millions of people still lack access to healthcare.
At the same time, hundreds of thousands of trained professionals remain unemployed or are migrating out of the continent.
In a report launched on Wednesday titled ‘The State of the Health Workforce in Africa 2026: Plan. Train. Retain’, WHO called for a deliberate shift linking education, employment, retention, quality, productivity, and investment to resolve the paradox of growing personnel numbers alongside unmet health needs.
The report was launched at the Second Africa Health Workforce Investment Forum in Accra, Ghana.
It highlights a deepening crisis driven not by lack of training, but by systemic failures in employment, distribution, and retention of health workers.
“Africa’s future depends on the strength of its human capital. Investing in our health workforce is not just a health priority — it is an economic and development imperative,” said Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, Vice-President of Ghana.
“Hosting this forum reflects Ghana’s commitment to transforming health systems through sustained investment in our workforce. Training alone is not enough. We must create jobs, strengthen skills, and retain talent,” said Kwabena Akandoh, Ghana’s Minister of Health.
Africa’s health workforce grew to 5.72 million in 2024, up from 4.3 million in 2018. However, the region still has only 46 per cent of the health workers it needs.
A major paradox persists: in 2024, an estimated 943,000 trained health workers were unemployed while health systems remained severely understaffed.
WHO has revised the projected health workforce shortage in Africa by 2030 from 6.1 million to 5.85 million — modest progress that remains fragile.
“Africa’s health workforce crisis is no longer defined by scarcity alone, but by systemic failure. We are training more health workers than ever, yet too many remain unemployed while millions go without care,” said Dr Mohamed Yakub Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa.
“Without bold investment and coordinated reform to plan, train and retain health workers, progress toward universal health coverage will remain out of reach.”
The report notes that training capacity has expanded, with over 325,000 graduates annually. However, more than half of new graduates in some countries remain unemployed or underemployed due to poor alignment between education systems and health labour markets.
Health workers correctly diagnose only about 62 per cent of cases and provide appropriate treatment in just 40 per cent of those. Additionally, nearly 46 per cent of health workers intend to migrate due to poor working conditions.
The report makes a strong investment case: every US$1 invested in the health workforce can generate up to 10 times in financial returns and more than 30 times in broader social and economic benefits.
Participants at the forum are expected to review progress under the Africa Health Workforce Investment Charter and mobilise new commitments. The forum will also introduce the Africa Health Workforce Agenda 2026–2035 to drive coordinated action.
