Morocco looks to increase medical staff, lure foreign doctors to address shortage

Morocco will offer incentives to attract foreign doctors and increase the number of graduates from medicine faculties to address a shortage due to brain drain, the health minister said.

Up to 1400 doctors trained in Moroccan universities leave the country, mostly to Europe, where many countries are vying to attract foreign medics, minister Khaled Ait Taleb said.

Morocco has adopted a law governing the hiring of foreign medical staff in the country, he said, adding that 453 foreign doctors are currently working in the country.

To meet increasing demand on health services and population growth, the government has adopted a 300-million-dollar strategy to increase the number of healthcare graduates to 90000 by 2025.

This should increase the number of medical staff per 10,000 people to 45 by 2030, from 17 currently, he said.