By: Felix Ikpotor
As part of a deliberate efforts aimed at addressing critical workforce challenges and also strengthen healthcare delivery in the state, the Rivers State Ministry of Health has begun a five-day Health Labour Market Analysis (HLMA) Methodology and Data Collection Workshop for health officers in the state.
Acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Vincent Wachukwu, while declaring the workshop open in Port Harcourt, said the programme is crucial owing to the growing pressure on health systems globally.
The workshop was organised in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), the World Health Organisation (WHO), and other development partners.
Wachukwu noted challenges facing the health sector such as shortages of skilled personnel, unequal distribution of health workers, migration, attrition, productivity concerns, rising disease burdens, and limited financial resources.
The acting permanent secretary stressed that the strength of any health system depends largely on the capacity of its workforce, describing health workers as essential to service delivery, disease surveillance, emergency response, maternal and child healthcare, and the achievement of universal health coverage.
He restarted the government’s commitment to adopting evidence-based workforce planning backed by reliable data, strategic investment, and policy coordination rather than fragmented interventions.
He explained that the Health Labour Market Analysis would enable the state to evaluate workforce supply, demand, financing realities, and healthcare needs while identifying existing policy and investment gaps.
“The exercise will help us develop practical strategies for building a resilient and sustainable health workforce capable of meeting the healthcare needs of our people,” he said.
Wachukwu acknowledged that although the state government has implemented reforms to strengthen the health sector, major challenges still persist.
He listed some of the issues confronting the sector to include shortages in critical health cadres, imbalance in workforce distribution between urban and rural communities, weak workforce data integration, ageing personnel, attrition pressures, limited fiscal space, and increasing demand for healthcare services.
“This workshop comes at a very critical moment not only for Rivers State, but for Nigeria’s health sector.
“Across the country and indeed globally, health systems are increasingly confronted with major workforce challenges, Shortages of skilled health workers, Inequitable distribution, Migration and attrition, Productivity concerns, Changing disease burdens and growing financial constraints.”
Emphasising the importance of collaboration and stakeholder participation, he noted that the success of the workshop would depend on the availability of quality data and institutional cooperation.
He urged participants to contribute actively throughout the workshop and support the data gathering and analytical processes, stating that the outcome of the exercise would guide policy formulation, improve workforce performance, strengthen investments in the health sector, and enhance healthcare outcomes across Rivers State.
He further commended the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, CHAI, WHO, development partners, and stakeholders for supporting the initiative.
On his part, the Assistant Director, Human Resources for Health at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Abuja, John Okobia, said the HLMA exercise was specifically designed to address the unique healthcare workforce realities and needs of Rivers State.
Okobia explained that the policy framework expected to emerge from the workshop would not be merely theoretical, but tailored towards practical solutions capable of improving healthcare delivery and outcomes across the state.
He stressed the need for deliberate interventions aimed at strengthening the health sector and improving access to quality healthcare services, expressing optimism that the five-day workshop would produce fruitful outcomes that would support effective health workforce planning and better health indices in the state.
“The policy that we are going to generate from here is not going to be a theoretical policy, but is going to solve the practical needs of the people of River State.
“With a population of about nine million people, Rivers State requires deliberate support and strategic interventions. What we aim to achieve through this exercise is to identify practical ways to improve health outcomes across the state. On that note, I want to sincerely thank you all for receiving us, and we are hopeful that the next five days will be productive and impactful, ” Okobia said.
