Africa has plenty of opportunities for investment in health as the medical personnel and health infrastructure are inadequate for African population of over 1 billion. All African countries have less than one physician per 1000 people with exception of Eqypt, Libya, Seychelles, Algeria, Tunisia and Mauritius. Therefore most of the people in Africa do not have access to trained physicians.
Statistics of physician per 1000 people
| COUNTRY | POPULATION | Health physicians per 1000 people | Year taken |
|---|---|---|---|
| (‘000) | |||
| EGYPT | 85294 | 2.8 | 2010 |
| LIBYA | 6002 | 1.9 | 2010 |
| SEYCHELLES | 91 | 1.5 | 2004 |
| ALGERIA | 38088 | 1.2 | 2010 |
| TUNISIA | 10836 | 1.2 | 2010 |
| MAURITIUS | 1322 | 1.1 | 2004 |
| SOUTH AFRICA | 48601 | 0.8 | 2011 |
| LESOTHO | 1936 | 0.7 | 2007 |
| MOROCCO | 32649 | 0.6 | 2010 |
| SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE | 187 | 0.5 | 2004 |
| NAMIBIA | 2183 | 0.4 | 2010 |
| NIGERIA | 174508 | 0.4 | 2010 |
| BOTSWANA | 2128 | 0.3 | 2010 |
| CAPE VERDE | 531 | 0.3 | 2010 |
| EQUATORIAL GUINEA | 704 | 0.3 | 2004 |
| GABON | 1640 | 0.3 | 2004 |
| SUDAN | 34848 | 0.3 | 2010 |
| ANGOLA | 18565 | 0.2 | 2009 |
| COMOROS | 752 | 0.2 | 2004 |
| DJIBOUTI | 792 | 0.2 | 2010 |
| KENYA | 44038 | 0.2 | 2011 |
| MADAGASCAR | 22599 | 0.2 | 2010 |
| SWAZILAND | 1403 | 0.2 | 2009 |
| BENIN | 9877 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| CAMEROON | 20549 | 0.1 | 2009 |
| COTE D’IVOIRE | 22401 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO | 75507 | 0.1 | 2004 |
| ERITREA | 6234 | 0.1 | 2004 |
| GHANA | 25200 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| GUINEA | 11176 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| GUINEA-BISSAU | 1661 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| MALI | 15969 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| MAURITANIA | 3438 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO | 4493 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| RWANDA | 12013 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| SENEGAL | 13300 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| TOGO | 7154 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| UGANDA | 34759 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| ZAMBIA | 14222 | 0.1 | 2010 |
| ZIMBABWE | 13183 | 0.1 | 2009 |
| BURKINA FASO | 17813 | 0 | 2010 |
| BURUNDI | 10888 | 0 | 2004 |
| CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC | 5167 | 0 | 2009 |
| CHAD | 11193 | 0 | 2004 |
| ETHIOPIA | 93877 | 0 | 2010 |
| GAMBIA | 1883 | 0 | 2010 |
| LIBERIA | 3990 | 0 | 2010 |
| MALAWI | 16778 | 0 | 2010 |
| MOZAMBIQUE | 24097 | 0 | 2010 |
| NIGER | 16899 | 0 | 2010 |
| SIERRA LEONE | 5613 | 0 | 2010 |
| SOMALIA | 10252 | 0 | 2010 |
| SOUTH SUDAN | 11090 | 0 | 2013 |
| TANZANIA | 48262 | 0 | 2010 |
| TOTAL | 1098635 |
Health Sector Investment opportunities
The investment opportunities in various countries is summarised as follows;
Burundi
Kenya
Rwanda
Tanzania
Uganda
References;-
- World Health Organization’s Global Health Workforce Statistics, OECD, supplemented by country data (Physicians per 1000 people)
- John Dau Foundation’s South Sudan Clinic Statistics On Healthcare (South Sudan)
- Physicians density (Physicians/1,000 population) 2013 Country Ranks (Seychelles and Sao Tome and Principe)
- Gabon Physicians density (Gabon)
- Science in the developing world: Eritrea’s shattered science (Eritrea)