Burundi: an attractive salary policy is needed to slow down the departure of doctors abroad (unions)

Low salaries and equipment lack are the main causes of the flight of Burundian doctors to other countries, stated the Health Personnel National Union (SYNAPS) chairman in a press briefing last Thursday. He calls on the government to make efforts to put in place a good salary policy in order to end this ongoing phenomenon. The Minister for Health explained herself to the National Assembly this Tuesday. INFO SOS Médias Burundi

Dr Vincent Ndayizigamiye indicated that this brain drain may result to harmful consequences such as an increase in the mortality rate in hospitals and the regression of the health sector.

Surrounded by members of the Union of General Practitioners of Burundi (SYMEGEB), the president of SYNAPS spoke about the monthly salary which does not even reach 500 thousand Burundian francs for most doctors.

“This undoubtedly leads them to think about looking for a better life elsewhere where they are better treated,” he insisted.

According to Dr. Ndayizigamiye, young Burundians risk no longer finding any interest in pursuing long-term medical studies.

“The other big risk is that doctors who do not leave the country are more called upon by the private sector who, in addition to an increased salary, find good equipment to put into practice what they have learned” , added the doctor.

For these two unions, the government should take the issue in hand to save the lives of the population who may be threatened in the coming days by the high costs to be paid in private hospitals, in search of quality services.

They add that we should also think about paying overtime to encourage these doctors who keep working.

Numbers

The Minister for Health Sylvie Nzeyimana was summoned to the National Assembly to explain, among other things, the massive departures of doctors from the public service.

“130 doctors from 80 health structures have gone to work outside Burundi,” she told deputies, citing a 2021 report produced by her ministry. It was this Tuesday in the commercial city Bujumbura.

According to medical sources who spoke to SOS Médias Burundi, in Rwanda and Kenya, at least 150 Burundian doctors have been received in Rwanda since 2014, with Kenya having received around fifty since then.

“Some have their own clinics while others are renowned specialists,” reassure our sources.

Several other Burundian doctors are leaving for France these days, medical sources confirmed to SOS Médias Burundi.