More than 100 nurses arrived in Antigua and Barbuda on Monday, January 26, as part of a major recruitment initiative aimed at strengthening the country’s health care system, according to the Ministry of Health and the Environment.
The nurses, who traveled from Ghana, are expected to serve at the Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre, community clinics across the island, and within the mental health sector over the next three years.
They were welcomed at the V. C. Bird International Airport by Minister of Health Sir Molwyn Joseph; Minister of State Michael Joseph; Permanent Secretary Stacey Gregg-Paige; Medical Director of the Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre Dr. Shivon Belle-Jarvis; Nursing Director Jacqueline Jno Baptiste; and other officials and health-care staff.
Members of the Ghanaian delegation were also in attendance, including Samuel Appiahkubi, technical director in Ghana’s Ministry of Special Initiatives; Nelson Ndebugre, a presidential staffer in the Office of the President; and Gilbert Attipoe, a presidential aide in the Office of the President of Ghana.
Health Minister Sir Molwyn Joseph described the arrival as a historic and symbolic boost for Antigua and Barbuda’s health sector, noting that it represents one of the largest single delegations to cross the Atlantic from Ghana.
“This is truly a delightful moment in the history of Antigua and Barbuda,” Joseph said. Addressing the nurses, he spoke of shared heritage and kinship, telling them they had “rejoined your family,” and expressed gratitude to Ghana’s president for supporting the initiative.
An official welcome ceremony for the nurses is scheduled for Saturday.
The nurses have been contracted for a three-year period and will undergo a three-week orientation programme focused on cultural integration, clinical alignment and role-specific training before being deployed to health facilities across the country.
Health officials estimate that Antigua and Barbuda requires approximately 400 nurses to operate its health system effectively. With about 260 local nurses and 33 Cuban nurses currently in service, the addition of the Ghanaian nurses is expected to push staffing slightly above the minimum operational threshold and improve the nurse-to-patient ratio, currently estimated at 1:10.
The government said the recruitment effort was influenced by positive experiences with Ghanaian nurses in other Caribbean countries, including Barbados and The Bahamas, where similar arrangements have helped to ease staffing shortages and improve patient care.
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