Sri Lanka has lost more than 4,600 healthcare professionals to overseas migration since 2022, Health Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa revealed in his remarks at the 78th World Health Assembly (WHA78) in Geneva. Addressing global health leaders, Dr. Jayatissa detailed the scale of the exodus: 726 specialist consultants, 1,116 medical officers, and approximately 2,800 nurses have left the country over the past three years.
“This represents not only a national crisis but a significant financial loss,” he said, noting the high cost borne by the State to train and retain healthcare workers.
Dr. Jayatissa called for urgent global attention to the issue of health workforce migration, warning of its far-reaching consequences for equitable healthcare access worldwide.
“The migration of skilled health workers is not a challenge unique to Sri Lanka — it is a growing global issue,” he said. “We must collectively address the imbalances it creates in health systems.”
He urged receiving countries to act responsibly and in line with the WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel, which calls for ethical recruitment and the protection of vulnerable health systems in source countries.