The Federal Government has moved forward with plans to establish the Armed Forces College of Medicine and Health Sciences (AFCOM&HS) in a bid to address Nigeria’s acute shortage of medical doctors, officials said on Friday after a high-level meeting on education and health workforce expansion. The initiative is also intended to strengthen medical capabilities within the country’s military health services.

Speaking at the meeting attended by top officials including the Minister of Education Dr Maruf Tunji Alausa and the Minister of Defence General Christopher Gwabin Musa, government sources said the new college is part of a broader strategy to reduce Nigeria’s estimated doctor shortfall of about 340,000 relative to population and healthcare needs.

Nigeria’s population now exceeds 240 million people, but the number of medical doctors in the Defence Forces alone is reportedly only 189 personnel, highlighting a critical gap in military medical services and wider national healthcare delivery. The college aims to train combat casualty specialists trauma surgeons emergency medics public health experts and allied health professionals for both military and civilian needs.

The planned institution will be established within the existing framework of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) and will leverage accredited federal and military hospitals for clinical training. Government officials say that entrance into the college will be through the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and that graduates will be commissioned as officers in the Armed Forces on completion of their studies, combining military discipline with medical expertise.

A Technical Working Group representing the ministries of Education and Defence, the Nigerian Defence Academy, medical regulatory bodies and other stakeholders has been constituted to finalise implementation processes. Officials said admissions are expected to begin by October or November 2026 once accreditation and operational frameworks are completed.

The move also builds on earlier legislative momentum, with the House of Representatives passing a bill for a military medical college for the Nigerian Armed Forces before the new federal plan was unveiled. Lawmakers had highlighted severe shortages of medical professionals and the need for specialised military training, noting that existing civilian medical institutions cannot meet projected demand.