NARD Calls Off Month-Long Strike After Reaching Agreement With FG
The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors has ended its 29-day nationwide strike, bringing temporary relief to the country’s strained health sector.
The industrial action, which began on November 1, 2025, was suspended after an Extraordinary National Executive Council meeting held on Saturday. The Secretary-General of the association, Dr. Shuaibu Ibrahim, confirmed the suspension during a phone interview.
For nearly a month, medical services across the country were crippled as about 11,000 resident doctors in 91 teaching hospitals withdrew their services over unpaid allowances and poor working conditions.
According to Ibrahim, the decision to suspend the strike followed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Federal Government. The agreement was anchored on seven key conditions presented by the doctors.
The conditions include the reinstatement of the Lokoja doctors, release of the Professional Allowance Table, payments of promotion and salary arrears in designated hospitals, an upgrade for doctors who passed Part I examinations, full implementation of the specialist allowance, and a resolution to the long-standing Membership Certificate dispute.
He confirmed that two of the demands have already been implemented — the release of the Professional Allowance Table and a directive approving CONMESS 3 as the entry level for doctors.
While resident doctors are expected to resume duties immediately, the association warned that the strike could be reactivated if the government fails to meet the remaining conditions within the agreed four-week timeline.
