Foreign Recruitment Of Health Workers To Be Criminalised In Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe's Vice-President, Constantino Chiwenga, announced that the country intends to introduce a law that would make it illegal for other nations to recruit its health workers.

The action seeks to prevent valuable healthcare workers from leaving Zimbabwe, which has long been a problem for the country's healthcare system.

Chiwenga, also the health minister, has compared the loss of healthcare workers to human slavery.

He declared harsher penalties for those he accused of robbing the country of its human resources.

"It is a crime against humanity to deliberately recruit and cause suffering in a country." 

Patients are dying in hospitals due to a lack of caregivers and physicians. "That must be taken seriously," said Chiwenga. 

“Zimbabwe frowns at this heinous crime which is also a grave violation of human rights," he added.

According to local media, over 4,000 nurses and physicians have fled Zimbabwe since February 2021.

The UK's National Health Service has proven to be an appealing location for Zimbabwean physicians and nurses because wages are significantly higher than those given at home.

The United Kingdom halted the recruitment of Zimbabwean health employees last month after the World Health Organization put the southern African country on the red list, which indicates nations confronting severe health personnel challenges.

The Zimbabwe Medical Association reports that the nation has approximately 3,500 doctors for a populace of 15 million people.

Zimbabwe is experiencing an economic catastrophe marked by high inflation, which has resulted in significant pay reductions.