The Canadian province of Quebec will stop recruiting nurses from most African countries to avoid creating shortages of healthcare workers in their countries of origin.

Since 2022, Quebec has brought in over a thousand foreign-trained nurses to tackle its healthcare labour shortage. Like many Western nations, including France, poor working conditions have driven nurses away from the sector, prompting Quebec to look abroad for solutions.

Under pressure from various countries concerned about losing their own nursing capacity, Quebec will cease recruitment from nearly all African nations.

Most of the nurses had been sourced from francophone countries like Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, and Morocco. Quebec will continue its recruitment programmes in Tunisia and from the Gulf region, according to Radio Canada reported.

Morocco welcomed the decision, with its ambassador to Canada Souriya Otmani calling it "just and fair".

The country had described the recruitment scheme as a "dead loss" and has raised concerns about the cost of training nurses who subsequently leave for jobs elsewhere, impacting its own healthcare system.

Serious shortages

The World Health Organization has warned that 55 countries, 37 of which are in Africa, face serious healthcare worker shortages, urging Western nations to support these systems.

For context, Cameroon has 1.9 nurses per 10,000 residents, while Quebec boasts nearly 100, according to the WHO.

However, those recruited in Quebec often face challenges adapting to the healthcare system. Many struggle to pass exams and find themselves in lower-paying jobs in care homes.

Cultural barriers and instances of racism exacerbate these difficulties.

Since 2017, over 1,900 healthcare workers, including nurses and midwives from 24 African, Latin American, and European countries, have been recruited to work in Canada.