Health Minister Sir Molwyn Joseph says the arrival of Ghanaian nurses in Antigua and Barbuda marks a historic policy decision that goes far beyond addressing staffing shortages, framing the initiative as a deliberate step toward rebuilding ties between Africa and the Caribbean diaspora while strengthening the country’s healthcare system.
Speaking at an official welcome reception, Joseph described the recruitment of approximately 120 nurses from Ghana as a strategic and long-term partnership rather than an emergency hiring measure. He said the programme was designed to build healthcare capacity, improve continuity of care and reinforce the central role nurses play in service delivery.
“Nurses are the backbone of healthcare,” Joseph said, noting that they serve as the daily interface between medical institutions and communities and are key to maintaining patient dignity and trust.
Joseph pushed back against public skepticism surrounding the programme, insisting that African medical professionals are well-trained and have long contributed to global healthcare systems. He cited past Ghanaian physicians who served in Antigua and Barbuda, saying their professionalism and clinical excellence earned public trust and left a lasting legacy within the national health system.
He rejected any suggestion that the initiative was symbolic, stressing that the nurses were recruited through a rigorous process and were essential to strengthening healthcare resilience.
“This is not symbolic,” Joseph said. “It is strategic, meaningful and essential.”
The health minister framed the partnership within a broader historical context, pointing to ancestral links between West Africa and the Caribbean and describing the initiative as part of a wider effort to reconnect the African continent with its diaspora through practical cooperation.
He said the collaboration represents the most direct and intentional policy pathway established by the government to foster structured professional cooperation between Antigua and Barbuda and Ghana, adding that healthcare is only the beginning.
Joseph revealed that discussions are already underway to expand the partnership into education, including the possible recruitment of Ghanaian teachers to address shortages in mathematics, science and technical subjects.
“This is just the beginning,” he said, adding that the framework could eventually facilitate broader trade and development cooperation between the two countries.
Joseph also acknowledged the personal sacrifices made by the nurses, many of whom relocated to a new country and health system. He assured them that they are valued and respected members of the national healthcare family and said the government recognizes its responsibility to support their integration.
Relocating, he said, requires courage, adaptability and trust, and the government does not take that commitment lightly.
Drawing on personal experience, Joseph reflected on the role of nurses in community life, recalling a single nurse who once served his home village of Jennings, underscoring the profession’s longstanding importance in Antigua and Barbuda.
He said African institutions and training systems have historically produced world-class professionals and continue to contribute to global development, even though those contributions are often under-recognized.
Joseph concluded by urging healthcare workers and the wider public to receive the Ghanaian nurses with openness and respect, emphasizing that they arrived not as strangers but as professionals who answered a call to serve.
He said their presence strengthens not only healthcare delivery but also a shared sense of purpose rooted in dignity, partnership and self-determination.
“This partnership is not only institutional,” Joseph said. “It is ancestral, cultural and human.”
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We welcome and respect Ghanaian nurses. That is not the issue.
The issue is that local nurses and midwives have carried this healthcare system for years while facing burnout, unsafe staffing, poor working conditions, and a lack of consistent support and respect. Hearing words like dignity, sacrifice, and backbone now feels painful when those same values have not always been shown to those already here.
Two truths can exist at once. Ghanaian nurses deserve respect and support, and Antiguan nurses and midwives deserve to be seen, protected, and valued in their own country.
If nurses are truly the backbone of healthcare, that respect must be reflected in everyday treatment, not just speeches.
So Sir Molwyn Joesph , please just give us a break with your foolishness in Jesus name . You can continue to make words sound beautiful when the real meat of the matter is not addressed.
Is it true that the nurses are here for training and will be paid while they are training? Check last week paper.
If so, wha could go so?