The Uganda Medical Association (UMA) has raised concerns over the government’s resistance to their efforts to facilitate the export of Ugandan doctors to countries such as the United Kingdom, Poland, and the United States. Despite a significant demand for their expertise abroad, UMA claims that bureaucratic obstacles have stalled progress in creating a formal framework for exporting medical professionals.
Dr. Herbert Luswata, the UMA President, explained the association’s attempts to establish a labor export company for health workers. He highlighted the pressing need to address unemployment among medical officers, estimating that over 2,000 doctors are currently jobless. This number is expected to rise as more than 1,000 medical graduates join the workforce annually. According to Luswata, their top priority for the year is to push for the licensing of their proposed company, a process that has faced repeated setbacks.
However, Lawrence Egulu, the Commissioner for Employment Services in the Ministry of Gender, Labor, and Social Development, disputed UMA’s claims. Egulu stated that the ministry has not received any formal application from the association for a license to export health workers. He emphasized that such applications must be submitted through the ministry’s online system, and there is currently no Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Uganda and any foreign country for the externalization of medical professionals.
Despite this, UMA has reportedly explored alternative avenues to help doctors secure jobs abroad individually. Late last year, the association organized sessions to guide doctors on job applications in the UK. Additionally, reports indicate that the Royal College of Physicians in the UK has already sourced some Ugandan specialists, demonstrating international interest in Uganda’s medical expertise.
The issue of exporting doctors has sparked controversy in the past. In 2015, a proposed agreement to send Ugandan doctors to Trinidad and Tobago was met with public outcry. Activists opposed the move, arguing that Uganda’s doctor-to-patient ratio of 1:25,000 far below the World Health Organization’s recommended 1:1,000 made such exports untenable. Critics maintain that exporting doctors could exacerbate the healthcare challenges in Uganda, where medical professionals are already in short supply.
Nonetheless, Luswata argues that doctors should be allowed to seek opportunities abroad, as many remain unemployed within Uganda. He believes the government’s inability to provide sufficient jobs locally justifies efforts to connect doctors with international markets.
Efforts to obtain a comment from the Ministry of Health regarding the matter were unsuccessful, with officials requesting additional time to gather information. Meanwhile, UMA continues to advocate for formalized systems to help Ugandan doctors pursue greener pastures abroad.