The British High Commissioner to Kenya, Neil Wigan on Monday declared that the migration of Kenyan nurses to the United Kingdom (UK) was a matter of mutual cooperation.
Speaking during an interview with Citizen TV, Neil noted that Kenyan nurses are well educated and they form a vital sector of Kenya’s diaspora in the U.K. which is one of the largest.
Neil clarified that the migration was not an attempt by the UK to drain Kenya’s health sector, but a strategy to facilitate employment of unemployed nurses while catering to the shortage of health workers in the UK.
“We think its a win-win because in Britain we have a shortage of Health workers particularly for nurses while Kenyan nurses are well educated and we are offering jobs to the recent qualified who are yet to get jobs,” stated Neil.
Additionally, he noted that the UK is not taking nurses away from Kenyan hospitals, but is instead offering opportunities to Kenyans who recently acquired their qualifications
Further Neil added that Kenya has benefited from the cooperation through diaspora remittances made by the nurses already working in the U.K
According to Neil, the nurses from Kenya enjoyed working in the National Health Service (NHS), in the UK as they acquired skills which could be repatriated in the future.
Neil also noted that Britain’s exit from the European Union would not affect migration or the number of opportunities for Kenyans aiming to work abroad.
However, despite the migration of Kenyan health workers to the UK, the government is in the process of clamping down on the migration of care workers' dependants.
On March 11, the country banned care workers from bringing in their dependants into the country in a move to reduce the number of migrants.
Additionally, the country is also aiming to increase the income level minimums for migrants aiming to get skilled worker visas.
