Foreign Workers Make Up 68 Percent of Greater Malé Healthcare Workforce

About 68 percent of healthcare workers in the Greater Malé Area are not Maldivian, according to data from the Ministry of Health, Family and Welfare.

Responding to a question from Central Machangolhi MP Ahmed Shameeru on the government’s plans to reduce reliance on foreign healthcare workers, Minister of Health, Family and Welfare Geela Ali said more than 12,000 people work in the country’s healthcare sector.

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“Looking at the statistics for 2025 in healthcare services, it shows that over 12,000 people are working in this service. Among these, there are over 7,000 people in the atolls and over 5,000 people in Malé working in our healthcare service, and within this, the number of foreigners is over 3,400 people,” she said.

According to the data, 68 percent of healthcare workers in the Greater Malé Area are foreign nationals.

The minister also said 60 percent of doctors working in the Maldives are not Maldivian.

She highlighted the administrative challenges created by the country’s reliance on foreign healthcare professionals, particularly when doctors leave their positions.

Minister Geela said the government wants to increase the number of Maldivians working in the healthcare sector and is looking to strengthen local education and training opportunities.

She noted that the Maldives National University (MNU) currently offers a range of healthcare-related courses and said the government hopes more Maldivians will complete these programmes and enter the sector.

The minister said increasing the number of Maldivian healthcare professionals would help establish a workforce that can sustain and develop the country’s healthcare system.