- The Federal Government has expanded annual nursing school admissions from 20,000 to 50,000 students to address critical manpower shortages across Nigeria’s healthcare sector.
- Minister of Education Dr. Tunji Alausa noted that the health sector reforms directly align with President Bola Tinubu’s vision to build a $1 trillion economy by 2030 through human capital development.
- The policy aims to meet domestic healthcare demands while positioning skilled Nigerian health professionals to compete globally.
The Federal Government has announced a major expansion in nursing education capacity, increasing annual intake across nursing schools nationwide from roughly 20,000 to 50,000 students.
Eko Hot Blog reports that disclosing the development during an interview on Sunday, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, explained that the policy is designed to combat severe healthcare worker shortages while building a highly skilled workforce to power Nigeria’s economic goals.
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Dr. Alausa emphasized that human capital development in critical sectors remains a central pillar of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, particularly in driving the national ambition to achieve a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
Beyond nursing, the minister revealed that the Federal Government has also expanded admission quotas for other key health professions, including medicine, pharmacy, and dentistry, to bridge historical gaps caused by systemic underinvestment and the ongoing migration of medical professionals abroad, popularly known as the “Japa” phenomenon.
Dr. Alausa added that complementary reforms, such as the sustainable structuring of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) and restored industrial stability across tertiary institutions through continuous dialogue with academic unions, will ensure long-term stability and success for students entering these expanded programs.
The aggressive expansion is expected to systematically reduce pressure on Nigeria’s primary and secondary healthcare centers as thousands of newly trained graduates enter the national health workforce over the coming years.
