Model UN Background Guide

Committee: World Health Organization (WHO)

Topic: Health Workforce Migration

Conference Year: 2026

Topic Background

Health workforce migration refers to the international movement of healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, midwives, and allied health workers, from one country to another. This phenomenon has historical roots dating back to colonial times when medical professionals moved between colonies and colonial powers. However, in the modern era, migration patterns have intensified due to globalization, disparities in economic opportunities, working conditions, and health system capacities.

The issue has become increasingly prominent on the WHO agenda due to growing concerns about the uneven distribution of health workers worldwide. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and parts of Latin America, face chronic shortages of trained health personnel. Meanwhile, high-income countries (HICs) rely heavily on foreign-trained health workers to fill gaps in their health systems, especially in rural or underserved areas. This dynamic exacerbates health inequities, undermines the capacity of source countries to provide adequate health services, and raises ethical questions about recruitment practices.

The COVID-19 pandemic further exposed vulnerabilities in global health workforce distribution, as demand for health workers surged worldwide. It highlighted the critical need for sustainable health workforce planning and international cooperation to manage migration flows while respecting the rights of migrant health workers. In 2026, the WHO continues to address this topic amid ongoing challenges such as brain drain, workforce maldistribution, and the impact of climate change and geopolitical instability on migration patterns.

Key Actors

States

• India and the Philippines: Major source countries for migrant health workers, with large numbers of nurses and doctors working abroad, particularly in the Gulf States, North America, and Europe. These countries are concerned with protecting their health workforce and receiving adequate compensation or support for training costs.
• United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia: High-income destination countries that rely heavily on foreign-trained health professionals to meet domestic demand. They face challenges balancing domestic training capacity with recruitment from abroad and ethical recruitment practices.
• South Africa and Nigeria: Both source and destination countries within Africa, grappling with internal and external migration of health workers, impacting regional health systems.
• European Union Member States: Particularly Germany, France, and Sweden, which experience significant inflows of migrant health workers and participate in regional coordination on workforce mobility.

International Organizations

• World Health Organization (WHO): The lead UN agency coordinating global health workforce policies, including the Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel.
• International Labour Organization (ILO): Addresses labor rights and fair working conditions for migrant health workers.
• World Bank: Provides funding and technical assistance for health workforce development in LMICs, focusing on strengthening health systems and retaining staff.
• International Organization for Migration (IOM): Supports migration management and protection of migrant health workers’ rights.

Bloc Positions

1. Source Countries (Primarily Low- and Middle-Income Countries)

• Emphasize the negative impact of health worker emigration on their fragile health systems and public health outcomes.
• Advocate for compensation mechanisms, capacity-building support, and ethical recruitment standards to minimize “brain drain.”
• Call for strengthened international cooperation to support retention strategies, including improved working conditions and career development opportunities.

2. Destination Countries (Primarily High-Income Countries)

• Highlight reliance on migrant health workers to address domestic shortages and aging populations.
• Support policies promoting ethical recruitment in line with WHO guidelines but emphasize sovereign rights to recruit internationally.
• Invest in domestic health workforce training but argue that international recruitment remains necessary to meet immediate needs.

3. Regional and Emerging Economies (e.g., South Africa, Brazil, Gulf States)

• Occupy a dual role as both source and destination countries, balancing inward and outward migration flows.
• Promote regional cooperation frameworks to manage health workforce mobility and share best practices.
• Advocate for investment in health workforce development to reduce dependency on external recruitment.

4. Civil Society and Health Worker Unions (Influential but Non-State Actors)

• Stress protection of migrant health workers’ rights, fair wages, and safe working conditions.
• Oppose exploitative recruitment practices and call for stronger enforcement of international labor standards.
• Advocate for transparency and accountability in bilateral agreements on health workforce migration.

Past UN Action

• WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel (2010): Provides voluntary principles and practices to promote ethical recruitment and strengthen health systems in source countries.
• World Health Assembly Resolutions: Various WHA resolutions have addressed health workforce issues, including WHA63.16 on health workforce strengthening and WHA69.19 focusing on migration and retention.
• UN High-Level Commission on Health Employment and Economic Growth (2016): Linked health workforce investments to economic development and sustainable growth.
• UN General Assembly Resolutions on the Right to Health and Migration: Affirm the protection of migrant health workers’ rights and the need for international cooperation.

Questions a Resolution Should Answer

1. How can WHO member states strengthen implementation and monitoring of the Global Code of Practice to ensure ethical recruitment?
2. What mechanisms can be developed to provide compensation or support to source countries affected by health worker migration?
3. How can international cooperation be enhanced to improve retention of health workers in source countries, including through education, training, and working conditions?
4. What role should destination countries play in investing in domestic health workforce capacity to reduce overreliance on migrant workers?
5. How can the rights and well-being of migrant health workers be protected, including access to fair wages, safe workplaces, and social protections?
6. What data collection and reporting improvements are needed to better track health workforce migration flows and their impacts?
7. How can regional cooperation frameworks be strengthened to manage cross-border health workforce mobility effectively?

Further Reading

• UN Documents: Look for WHO reports on the Global Health Workforce, World Health Assembly resolutions, and UN General Assembly discussions on migration and health. These provide official policy frameworks, guidelines, and member state commitments.
• Think-Tank Reports: Research papers and policy briefs from global health institutes such as the Global Health Workforce Alliance, the Center for Global Development, and the Migration Policy Institute offer in-depth analysis of migration trends, policy impacts, and best practices.
• News Outlets: Coverage from reputable international media such as The Lancet, BMJ, Reuters Health, and Al Jazeera provides current events, case studies, and human interest stories that illustrate the real-world implications of health workforce migration.

This background guide aims to provide delegates with a comprehensive understanding of the complex dynamics surrounding health workforce migration, enabling informed debate and effective resolution drafting in the 2026 WHO committee session.