The National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), Lagos State Council, has called for the immediate reversal and withdrawal of the new circular on certificate verification by the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN).
NMCN in its revised guidelines states that applicants seeking verification of certificates from foreign nursing boards and councils must possess two years of post-qualification experience from the date of issuance of the permanent practicing licence.
This was disclosed in a memo dated 7 February and signed by the NMCN Chief Executive Officer and Registrar, Faruk Abubakar.
In a statement issued after its state executive council emergency meeting, NANNM expressed reservations about the council’s circular and its “intent and impact on the progress and welfare of nurses and midwives in Nigeria.”
According to NANNM, the prerequisite of two years of post-qualification practice casts “aspersion on the quality of nurses and midwives licensed by the council” and that it is “an infringement of their rights.”
NANNM explained that the prolonged six-month minimum processing period stipulated in the circular, adding that the requirement for a letter from the Chief Executive Officer of the respective places of work is “a deliberate attempt to make the verification process burdensome.”
