The United Kingdom (UK) has added Nigeria to its red list of countries that should not be actively targeted for recruitment by health and social care employers unless there is a government-to-government agreement in place.
This decision was based on the methodology contained in the 10-year review of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) global code of practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel, which identified 55 countries facing the most pressing health workforce challenges related to Universal Health Coverage.
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The UK government website titled ‘Code of Practice for the international recruitment of Health and social care personnel in England’ explains that countries on the red list should be prioritized for health personnel development and health system-related support, but with safeguards that discourage active international recruitment of health personnel.
“Consistent with the WHO Global Code of Practice principles and articles, and as explicitly called for by the WHO Global Code of Practice 10-year review, the listed countries should be prioritised for health personnel development and health system-related support, provided with safeguards that discourage active international recruitment of health personnel,” the statement reads.
Kenya and Nepal were placed on the amber list, where international recruitment is only permitted in compliance with the terms of a government-to-government agreement.
The UK government’s website said active recruitment is permitted from green-graded countries where there is a government-to-government agreement in place for international health and care workforce recruitment.
Currently, green-graded countries with a government-to-government agreement for managing international health and care workforce recruitment are India, Malaysia, Philippines, and Sri Lanka.
It is recommended that employers, contracting bodies, recruitment organizations, agencies, and collaborations regularly check the list for updates prior to embarking on any recruitment campaign.
The government-to-government agreement may set parameters, implemented by the country of origin, for how UK employers, contracting bodies, recruitment organizations, agencies, and collaborations recruit.
These organizations are encouraged to recruit on the terms of the government-to-government agreement.