Zimbabwe will soon adopt a law that will make it unlawful for other countries to hire its health staff, according to the vice president of the country, Constantino Chiwenga.
The move intends to address a long-standing problem for Zimbabwe’s healthcare system—the loss of important healthcare personnel to other nations.
The disappearance of medical personnel, according to Mr. Chiwenga, who is also the health minister, is equivalent to human trafficking.
He announced harsher punishments for individuals who, in his opinion, had robbed the country of its human capital.
“If one deliberately recruits and makes the country suffer, that’s a crime against humanity. People are dying in hospitals because there are no nurses and doctors. That must be taken seriously,” Mr Chiwenga said on Wednesday.
“Zimbabwe frowns at this heinous crime which is also a grave violation of human rights,” he added.
Since February 2021, more than 4,000 nurses and doctors, according to local media, have departed Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwean doctors and nurses have found the National Health Service in the UK to be a desirable location due to the greater earnings offered there than at home.
After Zimbabwe’s inclusion on the World Health Organization’s “red list,” which is reserved for nations with major health staff issues, the UK last month stopped hiring Zimbabwean healthcare professionals.
The Zimbabwe Medical Association estimates that there are approximately 3,500 doctors in the nation, which has a population of 15 million.
Zimbabwe is experiencing a severe economic crisis that is marked by rising inflation and sharply falling salaries.
