[afro-nets] African Nations to be Compensated for Health Care Brain Drain

[Dr Rana Jawad Asghar <jawad@alumni.washington.edu>]

African Nations to be Compensated for Health Care Brain Drain
-------------------------------------------------------------

Tuesday, June 1, 2004
http://www.unwire.org/UNWire/20040601/449_24403.asp

Members of the African Union struck a deal with wealthy members
of the World Health Organization to be compensated for the loss
of their health care workers to richer countries, the Nairobi
Daily Nation reported Friday.

The negotiations were held during the 57th World Health Assembly
in Geneva May 17-22.

"The African Union pushed the agenda of compensation as one
voice and we will jointly negotiate the terms like the European
Union does," said Gideon Konchella, Kenya's assistant minister
for health.

Konchella said Kenya spends around $25,000 to train nurses and
$50,000 to train doctors, yet the country has a shortage of
5,000 nurses.

For the last decade, doctors, nurses and clinical workers have
been migrating to Europe, the United States, South Africa and
Namibia for better money after being educated in Kenya,
Konchella said.

Last year, 240 doctors and 1,000 nurses left Kenya.


U.S. AIDS Program Too Restrictive, Kenya Says

Konchella also talked to U.S. Secretary for Health and Human
Services Tommy Thompson about the difficulties of implementing
rules that the United States has set forth under its global pro-
gram to fight AIDS.

Kenya is among 14 countries that will benefit from a $15 billion
anti-AIDS plan announced by U.S. President George W. Bush last
year. Some countries have complained that the conditions that
accompany the funds are too rigid.

"We told him the money will not achieve its aim if the rules
were not flexible enough to allow a greater control by the gov-
ernment, buying of combined regimens of generic drugs, nutrition
and poverty as well as the buying of equipment in hospitals,"
Konchella said.

The United States agreed to relax some of the rules, including
those on generic drugs, Konchella said (Paul Udoto, Nairobi
Daily Nation/allAfrica.com, May 28).


--
Dr Rana Jawad Asghar
Coordinator South Asian Public Health Forum
mailto:jawad@alumni.washington.edu
http://www.DrJawad.com
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