Recruitment of Kenyan nurses to UK still on, Health Ministry insists

The Ministry of Health (MoH) has brushed off reports alleging that Kenyan nurses will no longer be recruited to work in the UK’s publicly funded National Health Service system.

This follows an earlier notice from the Health department which stated that Kenya had been added to the recruitment amber list of the UK.

Kenya and the UK consequently reiterated that the recruitment process remains intact and it has further been strengthened according to WHO guidelines.

“Moving Kenya from green to amber means international recruitment is only permitted in compliance with the terms of a government-to-government agreement. This will stop private companies from taking advantage of the interest generated by the agreement between our two governments, and stop uncontrolled recruitment,” the Ministry and the British High Commission said in a joint statement.

The ministry of health and the UK government signed a Memorandum of Understanding in July 2021 that will see Kenya’s health workforce recruited to UK hospitals.

Under the agreement, Kenyan health workers will be absorbed into the National Health Service, the publicly funded British healthcare system.

The supervised enrollment process will also make it difficult for uncontrolled recruitment to take place in the country.

The Ministry also revealed joint plans between Kenya and the UK to set up a hub at the Kenya Medical Training College in Nairobi to be used by Kenyan nurses when preparing for admission exams.  

“The Ministry of Health is also making every effort to ensure that we promote ethical and high standards in the recruitment of healthcare personnel in accordance with international best practices of fairness and transparency.”

The Health Ministry also said that Kenya is working hard to increase its home-grown supply of health and social care staff through enhanced training.