The Federal Government has reached an agreement with the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), pledging to gazette the long-delayed Nurses’ Scheme of Service within four weeks. This commitment has led to the suspension of the nurses’ seven-day warning strike, which began on Wednesday.
As part of the deal, the government also agreed to direct the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria to establish a framework for the central placement of graduate nurses for internship. This move is expected to address long-standing concerns about career progression, welfare, and equitable access to internship opportunities.
The resolutions were contained in a Memorandum of Understanding signed during a conciliation meeting convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Maigari Dingyadi, with the Coordinating Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Pate, and top officials of the nursing union also present.
According to the MoU, the Federal Ministry of Health has already written to the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation to begin the gazetting process. Both the ministry and representatives of the nursing association are expected to follow up to ensure the process is concluded within the agreed timeframe.
The Scheme of Service, which was approved by the National Council on Establishments in 2016, outlines job descriptions, qualifications, and career structures for nurses in public service. Its delayed gazetting has been a major source of agitation among health professionals.
In addition to this, the MoU captured the government’s resolve to implement a National Industrial Court judgment mandating the creation of a Department of Nursing at the Federal Ministry of Health. The matter has now been referred to the Ministry of Justice for proper interpretation and compliance.
Discussions were also initiated around several welfare-related allowances, including shift duty, uniform, call duty, and retention benefits. The Federal Ministry of Health is expected to meet with different health professional unions within two weeks to work out the details of these proposals.
The agreement also emphasized the need for decentralised internship placements, stating that the Nursing Council would finalise an ongoing process that takes into account the distribution of needs across states to avoid concentration in a few urban centres.
On governance issues, the Ministry assured NANNM that nurses would be fairly represented on the boards of tertiary health institutions and confirmed that the governing board of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria would be constituted soon.
Professor Pate disclosed that over 14,000 health workers had been recruited in 2024, with nurses accounting for the majority. He added that the process of issuing waivers for the 2025 recruitment cycle is already in progress.
