has sounded the alarm as statistics show that each week nurses are quitting their job and going abroad in search of a better future. He claimed that the salary issue is not the only cause of the exodus but that the high costs for housing are also at the core of the problem.

Minister Misiekaba explained that nurses have to spent have of their salary to pay rent. “It is not always the salary that is the problem but also housing”, said Minister Misiekaba who is in favor of a swift solution for the housing issue. Minister Misiekaba explained that a special fund which could give Surinamese citizens the chance to obtain a house in an affordable manner could be the solution. Without such solutions it will be extremely difficult to persuade workers to stay in Suriname. “People do not necessarily want to leave but if they cannot make ends meet here, they will leave”, said Minister Misiekaba. Meanwhile the administration of president Jennifer Simons is considering a new wage structure to improve the position of the nurses. In order to address the shortage of nurses, the government wants to hire foreign nurses on a temporary basis. But this plan is facing opposition within the healthcare sector.

Local nurses complained that their foreign colleagues earn more than them. There are reportedly 70 Filipino nurses working at the Academic Hospital Paramaribo (AZP) who earn between 1,000 and 1,500 American dollars per month. Minister Misiekaba acknowledged that “it is a sensitive issue. “People do not want to welcome the foreign workers with open arms”, said minister Misiekaba who added that “in some cases it is necessary to deploy foreign workers temporarily especially when specialized workers leave the country”. The nation’s Health minister confirmed that he has already discussed the issue with the head of state. One of the solutions that they discussed was the privatization of the hospital. But for now the healthcare sector will have to keep balancing between structural reforms and emergency measures.