PS Oluga holds talks with WHO Europe chief on health worker retention, ethical mobility framework

In a statement on the meeting, the Ministry of Health said the discussions centred on advancing a proposed Health Workforce Collaboration Framework aimed at addressing global staff shortages, improving retention, promoting social inclusion and strengthening protections for healthcare workers against violence and burnout.

Oluga highlighted Kenya’s engagement in health workforce advocacy, citing experience in medical professional leadership and policy work, including contributions to internship policy reforms and collective bargaining agreements.

He also referenced the WHO Wellbeing Index study conducted across Kenya, Nigeria and Ghana, involving more than 3,600 health worker interviews, which explored issues around wellbeing and workplace conditions.

The talks also discussed a proposed Africa Center for Health Workforce Initiatives, an umbrella platform seeking endorsement from WHO and Africa CDC to strengthen health workforce systems through policy reforms, training and specialisation, mobility management and healthcare worker wellbeing.

Key concerns raised included ethical recruitment practices, gaps in bilateral labour agreements, increasing migration of health professionals, curriculum harmonisation challenges in training institutions and the need for co-investment models to address workforce losses linked to brain drain.

Kluge said the WHO European Region is grappling with an ageing health workforce and growing concerns around violence against healthcare workers, burnout and mental health.

The meeting also explored shared learning opportunities, including the formalisation of community health workers and the potential adoption of Africa’s community health approaches within European health systems.

The engagement, officials said, reaffirmed the importance of Africa–Europe cooperation in building a resilient health workforce to support universal health coverage and future global health security priorities.