Nurses to Commence Nationwide Protest on June 1 

Graduate nurses across Nigeria have announced plans to hold a nationwide protest on June 1, 2026, over the continued delay in the release of their professional certificates. The planned protest follows the Federal Government’s failure to constitute the board of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN), a development that has reportedly delayed the signing and issuance of certificates to affected nursing graduates for more than three years.

Since 2023, many nurses and midwives, including fresh graduates, have reportedly been unable to obtain or renew their practising licences due to the absence of a board chairperson empowered to sign and authenticate the documents. The development has left many healthcare professionals unable to secure local and international employment opportunities despite meeting other recruitment requirements.

In a statement signed by Nurse Abdul-Azeez Olalekan, South West Zonal Coordinator of the Elegant Nurses Forum (ENF), the organisers said the delay had negatively affected the careers and future of many young nurses across the country.

“Nurses have endured poor welfare, exploitation, intimidation and neglect for too long. We refuse to continue suffering in silence while those responsible for this crisis show no urgency in resolving it,” the statement reads in part.

Describing the planned protest as a constitutional right, the group also called on nurses, student nurses and healthcare workers across the country to mobilise for the demonstration, insisting that the protest would proceed as scheduled.

“We make it clear that any attempt to repress, intimidate or silence protesting Nurses through the use of security agencies will be strongly resisted within the ambit of the law. Peaceful protest is not a crime,” the statement said.

Among the demands listed by the organisers are the immediate constitution of the NMCN board by the Federal Government, immediate issuance of certificates to all affected graduate nurses nationwide, compensation and consideration for nurses who lost opportunities due to the delay, and an end to what the group described as the continued neglect and humiliation of nurses in Nigeria.

The group further called on trade unions, labour movements, civil society organisations, student bodies and human rights groups to support the protest in solidarity with nurses.