Nurses and allied health workers in Kwara State have welcomed news that Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has approved the implementation of a corrected Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) and a new Professional Allowance Table for the cadres.
The approval was conveyed in a memo from the Office of the Head of Service dated 19 October 2026 and reported on 20 October.
What was approved
According to the report, the governor had earlier set up a committee to review salaries and allowances of medical officers and allied health workers. Following its final report, the approved measures include:
- Implementation of the corrected CONHESS for nurses and allied health workers.
- A new Professional Allowance Table, with an upward review of professional allowances.
- Rural Allowance processing: deployment and posting details of nurses and allied health workers are to be forwarded to the Office of the Head of Service so eligible staff working in rural areas can receive the allowance.
- Medical laboratory scientists: advancement from Grade Level 09 to Grade Level 10 with effect from their present appointment dates, to maintain seniority.
The committee also recommended an enhanced entry point for qualified graduate nurses and medical laboratory scientists in line with Federal Government circulars; the report did not make clear whether this specific recommendation was approved. The Commissioner for Finance has been instructed to make arrangements for implementation.
What we don’t know yet
- The specific allowance amounts.
- The effective date for the corrected CONHESS and new allowance table.
- Whether arrears will be paid.
- Official reactions from the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) Kwara State Council and other unions.
We’ll update when these details are published.
Why it matters
Poor pay and allowances are among the main reasons nurses cite for leaving Nigerian public service, whether for private hospitals or for jobs abroad. Nurses and midwives nationally have repeatedly protested over CONHESS adjustments, shift and call-duty allowances, and the gap between their pay and that of other health professionals. State-level improvements like Kwara’s can help retention, particularly when combined with rural allowances that make postings outside cities more attractive.
The bigger picture: Nigeria’s primary health care gap
The need is stark. Federal figures released in June 2026, reported by ThisDay, showed that across 26 assessed states, Nigeria’s primary health care centres needed about 220,755 health worker positions but only around 98,059 were filled, a vacancy rate of about 55.6%, leaving a shortfall of 122,696 workers. The federal government estimated it would need three years and about N4.55 billion to fill the posts. Gaps were most severe in the South-East (about 73%) and North-West (about 71%), and North-Central states averaged around 8 PHC workers per 10,000 people.
Nurses and midwives form the backbone of primary health care. Retaining them, through fair pay, safe working conditions and career progression, is essential to cutting Nigeria’s high maternal and child mortality.
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Sources: Nigerian Eye (20 October 2026), citing a Kwara State Office of the Head of Service memo; ThisDay (28 June 2026).