Healthcare services across Nigeria will be badly affected on Wednesday as nurses, under the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) in federal hospitals, begin a one-week warning strike.
The strike will affect 74 federal hospitals, as well as some state and local health centres.
The strike is expected to shut down services in federal medical centres, teaching hospitals, and specialist hospitals. The nurses are protesting over low pay, staff shortages, unpaid allowances, and unsafe working conditions.
On July 14, 2025, the union gave the Federal Government 15 days to take action and prevent a full breakdown of healthcare services.
The union said the government has not started any talks with them since the deadline was issued.
Speaking on Monday, the National Chairman of NANNM-FHI, Morakinyo Rilwan, said nurses want better shift and uniform allowances, their own salary structure, more nurses hired, and a proper nursing department in the health ministry.
He said the strike is now unavoidable because the government has refused to take action.
Rilwan explained that nurses are treated the same as other health workers, even though their work is different and deserves a special salary scale.
He said nurses work 24-hour shifts, including nights, which are becoming more dangerous. Yet, they are not fairly paid.
He pointed out that nurses should get 30% of their basic salary as shift allowance, based on a 2009 government rule, but they currently receive only 6.8% — the same as a gatekeeper.
He also said nurses only get ₦20,000 per year for uniforms, a figure that has not changed in 20 years, even though they need to replace their white uniforms regularly.
He mentioned that other professionals, like doctors, recently got an increase in their clothing allowance, but nurses were left out.
Rilwan added that the nurses want their core duty allowance increased from 1.7% to 4%. He also said there is no nursing department in the ministry, which weakens the profession.
Currently, a nursing director reports to another director in a different department. He said nurses want their own department led by a full director.
He added that a nursing scheme of service was approved in 2016, but it’s still not being used. Nurses only want the government to start using the approved document.
He said many nurses work without basic tools like gloves, syringes, or gauze, which puts their lives in danger. Yet, they keep saving lives despite these challenges.
The government says there aren’t enough nurses, but Rilwan said Nigeria trains over 10,000 nurses every year. The real issue is that the government doesn’t hire or pay them well, so many leave or work in poor conditions.
He also said the board of the Nursing and Midwifery Council has not been active for over four years and needs to be reformed.
The strike will affect all public healthcare centres across Nigeria, including the 74 federal hospitals, general hospitals, and local health centres in every state and local government area.
Omomo Tibiebi, the union’s Public Relations Officer, said the strike will be total, with no services at all — not even emergency care. The 15-day notice ends on Tuesday night, July 29, 2025, and the strike begins at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, July 30, 2025.
