The number of doctors working for the National Health Service (SNS) exceeded 3,100 professionals at the end of 2024, consolidating a 15% growth over the last five years, according to data from the latest statistical yearbook of the National Statistics Institute (INE), reported Lusa.
According to the document, the country went from 2,786 doctors in 2020 to 3,197 in 2024, representing an increase of 411 professionals in the period under review. In the last year alone, the public health system added 200 more doctors, reflecting a significant increase in healthcare capacity.
The data also reveal that, at the end of 2024, 572 foreign doctors were working in the SNS, the highest number recorded in recent years, highlighting the growing dependence on international cooperation to meet the sector’s needs.
The strengthening of human resources also extended to other areas. The number of dentists increased to 794 in 2024, more than double the 343 recorded in the previous year. The number of nurses rose from 8,602 in 2020 to 12,271 in 2024, reaching a new all-time high.
On the occasion of Mozambique’s Doctors’ Day, celebrated annually on March 28, President Daniel Chapo reiterated the government’s commitment to continue investing in the training, recognition, and improvement of working conditions for healthcare professionals. On the occasion last year, he highlighted the “resilience, professionalism, and high sense of humanity” of doctors, emphasizing that many practice in particularly demanding contexts.
On the same day, the president of the Mozambican Medical Association, Gilberto Manhiça, called for greater investment in the sector and the regulation of medical practice. In a note alluding to the anniversary, he acknowledged that the practice of medicine in the country faces structural challenges.
“Being a doctor in Mozambique often means practicing the art of healing in conditions that challenge even the most solid principles of medical ethics,” he said. “It means working with a shortage of materials, medicines, and human resources, facing limitations that test our commitment to life. It is devastating, in many ways, to the purpose to which we committed ourselves when we decided to embrace this profession. And yet, every day we keep alive the mission of serving our people,” he added.
