A new report by the World Health Organization (WHO) has drawn attention to persistent imbalances in Africa’s health sector, where the rapid expansion of trained medical personnel continues to contrast with widespread gaps in access to essential healthcare services across many countries.
The findings were presented on Wednesday during the launch of the State of the Health Workforce in Africa 2026 report by WHO Regional Director for Africa, Mohamed Janabi, who said the continent is at a crucial turning point requiring urgent reforms and stronger investment in human resources for health.
He explained that although Africa has recorded significant growth in its health workforce over the past decade, structural weaknesses such as unemployment, poor distribution of workers, and migration continue to undermine progress in the sector.
“Africa is training more health workers than ever before, yet nearly one million trained professionals are unemployed, while millions still lack essential services”, Janabi said.
The report showed that the continent’s health workforce increased from about 1.6 million in 2013 to 5.7 million in 2024. However, Africa still meets only about 46 per cent of its required workforce needs, with projections indicating a shortage of roughly six million health workers by 2030 if current trends continue.
It also highlighted concerns around underemployment of trained professionals, outward migration of skilled workers, and unequal access to healthcare services between urban and rural communities.
“The challenge is no longer just numbers”, Janabi noted. “It is about jobs, distribution, quality and retention”.
