On 17–18 June, WHO convened the Expert Advisory Group on the WHO Global Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Personnel (the Code). The Code, approved by Member States at the Sixty-third World Health Assembly in 2010 (Resolution WHA63.16), articulates key principles for the ethical management of international recruitment of health personnel, outlines core elements of international collaboration on the topic, and includes a robust monitoring and reporting framework. It also promotes investment in health workforce education, employment and retention as integral for health systems sustainability.
The Code includes specific provisions on information exchange and monitoring. This includes regular reporting on the Code’s implementation by Member States, non-State actors and recruiters, and a report by the WHO Director-General, informed by an Expert Advisory Group, on the Code’s relevance and effectiveness every five years. Four rounds of reporting have been conducted to date, and the fifth round of reporting is ongoing in 2024 with a report to the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly in 2025. The Code is intended to be a dynamic document, responsive to a changing global environment.
The Expert Advisory Group is composed of representatives of Member States, independent experts, partner agencies and United Nations organizations and will produce a report to the WHO Director-General. The first meeting focused on reviewing contemporary evidence on international health workforce recruitment and migration and identifying key policy issues of interest.
The World Health Assembly has agreed that the health and care workforce is a priority within its Fourteenth General Programme of Work: the availability of a competent, supported and motivated health workforce being fundamental for universal health coverage, health security, emergency preparedness and climate response.
“With international migration of health and care workers at record levels, the Expert Advisory Group review of the Code is most timely. The aim is to have the most comprehensive account of health worker migration to inform a contemporary consensus on solutions and mutual benefits for countries and health workers,” said Jim Campbell, Director of the WHO Health Workforce Department.
Effective implementation of the Code, informed by regular expert review, can safeguard countries with workforce vulnerabilities to meet people’s health needs, promote fair working conditions for migrant health workers, foster collaboration among countries through bilateral agreements and encourage countries to produce and employ sufficient workers to meet national requirements.