Canada Express Entry Policy For Health Workers Will Hit Nigeria Hard – Resident Doctors

The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has stated that Canada’s plan to introduce a new Express Entry category for foreign-trained doctors by early 2026 will have a significant impact on Nigeria.

Speaking to LEADERSHIP, NARD President Dr Mohammed Suleiman, that globally, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare providers are in short supply. “It is a global scarcity,” he said.

However, he said countries like Canada are actively easing immigration bottlenecks to attract doctors, nurses, and pharmacists from developing nations. This move continues to entice Nigerian health workers seeking better conditions.

“What countries do is to lessen the bureaucratic bottlenecks to getting these select few specialist care providers. Now, they target doctors, nurses and pharmacists from developing parts of the world. To a considerable extent, it works,” he said.

Dr Mohammed stated that approximately 5,000 doctors left Nigeria in the past year (between 2024 and 2025), noting that poor working conditions, excessive workload, inadequate remuneration, slow career progression, and challenges in residency training remain the major push factors driving the exodus.

Even basic needs such as reliable electricity in hospitals remain a struggle in many facilities, he said, stressing that “These kinds of opportunities that foreign countries provide tend to attract doctors from countries like Nigeria. It will hit Nigeria hard, definitely.”

The NARD president expressed concern that while other nations are doing everything possible to bring in skilled health workers, Nigerian doctors continue to face delayed employment and stalled negotiations.

The government announced waivers for over 20,000 health workers this year. As I speak with you, none of them has received employment letters. These are qualified people. When they see opportunities abroad, they will leave,” he said.

Opportunities like those Canada is currently providing will give young doctors an alternative. And we can’t stop them, it is their human right to say they want to, we can’t stop them. So, the best I can do is call on my colleagues to be more patient, but then call on the government to be more rapid in responding to these kinds of problems,” he explained.

Dr Mohammed added that the government’s slow response to longstanding agreements on improved workload conditions, burnout prevention, remuneration adjustments, and career progression is fueling frustration among young professionals.

He stressed that while union leaders continue to urge members to remain patient, it is becoming increasingly complex to convince them to stay when viable alternatives abroad are readily available.

He also highlighted the critical contribution of Nigerian doctors abroad, noting that health systems in the United States and the United Kingdom would “collapse”.

“If you pull out all the Nigerian doctors in the American health sector, the United States, and you pull out all the doctors in the NHS in the UK, those healthcare systems will collapse today. This means that Nigerian doctors and nurses are in high numbers supporting other countries.

“There is something they are doing right. And as union leaders, we are aware of the reality in Nigeria. We are not suggesting that people be paid more than they are being paid elsewhere. No, we know Nigeria can’t afford that. What we are saying is, be reasonable about some of these things,” he explained.

He warned that unless urgent action is taken, Nigeria will continue to face severe shortages of doctors, nurses, and pharmacists in the coming years, leading to recurring industrial actions and further deterioration of the health system.