No fewer than 16,156 nurses and midwives trained in Nigeria have been licensed to practise in the United Kingdom between 2017 and September 30, 2025, according to the latest data from the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council.
Findings from the NMC register obtained on Wednesday show a steady rise in the number of Nigerian trained professionals relocating to the UK, reflecting the growing trend popularly described as japa, where skilled workers leave the country in search of better pay, career growth and improved working conditions.
Official figures indicated that as of September 30, 2025, a total of 16,156 Nigerian educated nurses were on the UK professional register. This represented an increase from 15,421 recorded as of March 31, 2025, translating to a growth of about 4.8 per cent within six months.
Reports released earlier in the year ranked Nigeria as the third largest source of foreign trained nurses in the UK, coming behind the Philippines and India. However, the data also showed that international recruitment declined across major source countries, including Nigeria, India and the Philippines.
Despite the drop in overseas recruitment, the NMC noted that the number of UK educated nurses joining the register has increased, though not fast enough to offset the shortfall created by reduced international inflows. This has resulted in a slower overall growth of the UK nursing workforce in the past year.
Meanwhile, the migration trend continues to raise concern for Nigeria’s health sector. The 2025 Nigeria Health Statistics report by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare revealed that 43,221 health workers, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists and laboratory scientists, left the country between 2023 and 2024.
The report further showed that over 23,000 Nigerian nurses and midwives migrated abroad by 2024, with the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Ireland listed as their top destinations.
Commenting on the situation, the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, said Nigeria’s doctor to population ratio stands at about one doctor to 5,000 people, while the nurse to population ratio is about one to 2,000, far below World Health Organisation standards.
Salako said the Federal Government was working to address the gaps through stronger primary healthcare systems, expanded training quotas, improved workforce data and retention policies aimed at reducing the impact of migration on the country’s healthcare delivery.
