No fewer than 16,156 nurses and midwives trained in Nigeria are currently licensed to practise in the United Kingdom, highlighting the continued impact of the country’s growing “japa” migration trend.
Data from the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) show that between 2017 and September 30, 2025, thousands of Nigerian-trained health workers were added to the UK register. The NMC confirmed that as of September 2025, 16,156 nurses educated in Nigeria were practising in the UK.
This represents an increase from 15,421 recorded as of March 31, 2025 — a growth of about 4.8 per cent within six months. Earlier reports from the NMC ranked Nigeria as the third-largest source of foreign-trained nurses in the UK, behind only the Philippines and India.
Despite this, international recruitment into the UK has slowed recently across major source countries. While more UK-trained nurses continue to join the workforce, the numbers have not been sufficient to offset the decline in overseas recruitment, resulting in slower overall growth of the register.
Nigeria’s healthcare sector continues to feel the strain. According to the 2025 Nigeria Health Statistics report, about 43,221 healthcare professionals — including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and laboratory scientists — left the country between 2023 and 2024. Of this figure, over 23,000 were nurses and midwives.
The most common destinations were the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Saudi Arabia, and Ireland.
Commenting on the situation, Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Salako, disclosed that Nigeria’s doctor-to-population ratio stands at about 1:5,000, far below the World Health Organisation’s recommended 1:600. He added that the nurse-to-population ratio is approximately 1:2,000, compared to the recommended 1:300.
Dr. Salako said the Federal Government is implementing measures to address the gaps, including strengthening primary healthcare, expanding workforce data systems, increasing training capacity, and introducing retention strategies to curb the migration of health workers.