Mon May 12 04:30:00 UTC 2025: ## WHO Report Highlights Urgent Need for Investment in Nursing Workforce to Achieve Global Health Goals
**Geneva, Switzerland** – A new World Health Organization (WHO) report, “The State of the World’s Nursing 2025,” reveals a critical need for increased investment in the global nursing workforce to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. The report, the most comprehensive analysis to date, highlights nurses’ indispensable role in addressing health inequities and achieving universal health coverage.
With only five years remaining to meet the SDGs, the report underscores the urgency of the situation, citing rising geopolitical tensions and economic challenges as significant obstacles. It warns that continued inaction risks stagnating progress on universal health coverage and exacerbating health worker shortages.
The report presents new data on key areas including nursing education capacity, advanced practice nursing, and remuneration. It builds upon the 2021-2025 Global Strategic Directions for Nursing and Midwifery, adding five new policy priorities and regional data breakdowns. Country-specific profiles are also available online.
The WHO is calling for immediate action from policymakers, nursing associations, regulators, and development partners to utilize the report’s findings to inform policy decisions and investments. The organization stresses that the next five years represent a crucial window of opportunity to strengthen the nursing workforce and ensure progress towards achieving the health-related SDGs. Failure to act decisively, the WHO warns, will jeopardize global health goals and leave vulnerable populations underserved.
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