ST JOHN’S, Antigua, Jan. 16, CMC – One hundred and twenty nurses from the Republic of Ghana are scheduled to arrive here shortly as the government moves to ease staffing shortages in the public healthcare system.
The Director General of Communications in the Prime Minister’s Office, Maurice Merchant said the nurses are expected to arrive on January 23.
“Cabinet welcomed the arrival of 120 nurses from the Republic of Ghana,” Merchant said, adding that they “will serve within the public health care system of Antigua and Barbuda.
Speaking during Thursday’s post- Cabinet media briefing he said the nurses will be deployed primarily at the Celeste Bird Medical Centre, as well as in community health clinics, schools and other health institutions.
“These are highly trained, qualified individuals coming out of Ghana,” he said. “Most of them are experienced nurses and they are expected to make an impact within the healthcare delivery system in Antigua and Barbuda.”
He said the additional staff are expected to reduce pressure on existing healthcare workers, noting that Antigua and Barbuda continues to lose nurses to overseas recruitment.
“On a weekly basis, our nurses migrate,” Merchant said. “Our nurses are being poached because of their standards, because of how qualified they are.”
Merchant said the recruitment of Ghanaian nurses forms part of a contractual arrangement between the two countries and is one element of the government’s response to ongoing workforce shortages.
“Importing of nurses from Ghana is one aspect. Training is another aspect,” he said, pointing to ongoing efforts to train local nurses through the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus.
CMC/ab/kb/2026