The Economic Policy Advisor to the Vice President, Professor Sharif Mahmoud Khalid, has defended the government’s performance in supporting health workers, stating that while challenges remain, the situation in Ghana is often unfairly compared to systems abroad without proper context.

Speaking on Newsfile program on Saturday, June 14, Prof Khalid cautioned against what he termed the “erroneous impression” that nurses and medical professionals are significantly better off in countries such as the United Kingdom, noting that public perception is often skewed by surface-level comparisons.

“There is this erroneous impression to say elsewhere these nurses are being treated right. We want our nurses to be treated right, of course,” he said.

“But let’s take the UK for example — a Band 5 nurse earns about 24,000 to 25,000 pounds per annum. That’s per annum. What allows them to earn more is locum services and other bank work, which supplement their basic salary.”

According to Prof Khalid, such opportunities for additional income often distort the public’s understanding of base salaries abroad, leading many to assume that nurses in Europe are far more comfortable than they actually are.

“It sometimes tends to paint a picture as though this is what is happening out there in Europe or elsewhere. But it is not entirely the case,” he said.

He also pointed to the financial struggles of junior doctors in the UK as further evidence that systems elsewhere are not without their shortcomings.

“An F1 medical doctor can’t even rent a one-bedroom apartment on their basic salary,” he noted. “It comes cumulatively. It tells you that we are doing our best.”

Prof Khalid’s comments come amidst heightened tensions between the government and health sector unions, particularly the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), who have recently staged strike actions over unpaid allowances and unmet contractual obligations.