Johannesburg, South Africa – Zambia and Kenya have been recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa for outstanding progress in strengthening the availability and reporting of health workforce data, providing a stronger evidence base for workforce planning, investment and decision-making.
The recognition was presented during the 2026 WHO–Africa CDC Joint Annual Technical Review and Planning Meeting on the Health Workforce, in Sandton, South Africa.
Zambia ranked first in the WHO African Region and third globally in the 2024 National Health Workforce Accounts (NHWA) data reporting cycle, achieving a data availability score of 94%. Kenya ranked third in the African Region and sixth globally, with a score of 92%.
Both countries recorded significant improvements compared with the previous reporting cycle. Zambia moved from 10th place regionally in 2023 to first place in 2024, while increasing its data availability score from 81% to 94%. Kenya rose from eighth to third place in the Region, increasing its score from 82% to 92%.
The National Health Workforce Accounts are WHO’s standardized system for monitoring health workforce information and strengthening national health workforce information systems. The mechanism enables countries to report health workforce data for global monitoring, analysis and policy development.
Reliable and timely health workforce data help countries understand the size and distribution of their workforce, identify shortages and gaps, and inform decisions on education, employment, deployment and retention. Strengthening the quality and availability of these data is therefore an important foundation for building health systems that can respond effectively to population health needs.
Dr Adelheid Onyango, Director Health Systems and Services at the WHO Regional Office for Africa, emphasized that strengthening health workforce data is critical to translating evidence into action.
“Improving data quality is not merely a reporting exercise; it is the foundation for better policy decisions and smarter investments” she said.
The recognition was presented on behalf of WHO by Dr Shenaaz El-Halabi, WHO Representative to South Africa, who congratulated Zambia and Kenya on their achievement.
Across the WHO African Region, countries have made considerable progress in strengthening health workforce information. All 47 Member States have designated NHWA focal points, and 10 of the 20 countries globally with the most recent and complete health workforce data are in the African Region.
For Zambia, the recognition marks particularly significant progress, with the country rising nine positions in the regional ranking in a single reporting cycle.
“This recognition is an important milestone for Zambia. Our focus now is to translate strong health workforce data into better decisions, targeted investments and tangible improvements in the availability and distribution of health workers” said Roy Chihinga, Director Human Resource and Administration, Ministry of Health, Zambia.
The message reflects Zambia’s stated ambition to move beyond strong reporting towards greater use of NHWA evidence in workforce recruitment, deployment, retention and resource allocation.
Kenya has similarly strengthened the use of health workforce information, including through the development of Health Workforce Profiles for all 47 counties, bringing evidence closer to the level where workforce planning and implementation decisions are made.
“Kenya’s progress demonstrates what is possible when health workforce data are transformed into evidence for action. A significant milestone has been the development of Health Workforce Profiles for all 47 counties, enabling counties to identify workforce gaps and use evidence to inform planning, recruitment, deployment and investment” said Dr Lucy Musyoka, Director, Health Workforce, Health Standards and Quality of Care, Ministry of Health, Kenya.
The progress in Zambia and Kenya also supports their wider efforts to strengthen health workforce investment. Both countries are among the frontrunners in implementing the Africa Health Workforce Investment Charter, which promotes country-led action to increase and better align investments in the health workforce. Strong workforce data provide an important evidence base for identifying priorities, directing investments where they are most needed and tracking progress.
The recognition seeks not only to celebrate country achievements but also to encourage continued investment in health workforce information systems and data quality, promote peer learning among Member States, and reinforce the use of evidence for health workforce planning, monitoring and accountability.
The 2024 assessment also ranked Burkina Faso second in the WHO African Region and fifth globally, with a data availability score of 93%. Burkina Faso will be recognized during the French and Portuguese session of the annual meeting, taking place from 17 to 21 August 2026.
As countries advance implementation of regional health workforce priorities, including the Africa Health Workforce Investment Charter, strengthening the production and use of reliable workforce data will be critical to ensuring that investments and policies respond to actual country needs.
