Nurses And Midwives’ Welfare: NLC Charges FG

Ayuba Wabba, the president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has asked that the Federal Government increase the investments in the welfare and working conditions of nurses and midwives.

He made this call in Abuja during the commemoration of the International Nurses/Midwives Week at a scientific conference that was organised by the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM).

According to Mr. Wabba, doing so would boost their morale in the workplace and reduce brain drain. He also advised for the nurses and midwives in the country not to relent in their efforts for quality health service delivery.

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Mr. Michael Nnachi, the President of the NANNM, stated that the Nigeria would not achieve the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) without the government’s increased investment in nurses and midwives.

While he called upon the government to employ more nurses and midwives, he also mentioned that there was an urgent need to improve the welfare package of nurses in the country. He pointed out that the work environment accounted for the massive brain drain in the country.

Mr. Tanko Sununu, the Chairman of the House of Representative Committee on Health, bemoaned the poor hazard allowance allocated to health workers. According to him, “I quite believe that nurses and other health workers in the country have made a lot of sacrifices. The N5,000 hazard allowance is not acceptable. The House has championed the review of that allowance and we have agreed with the executive to liaise with the union so that we can have acceptable allowance”.