The Kwara State Council of the National Association of Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) has joined the nationwide one-week warning strike initiated by the national body, demanding urgent resolution of longstanding grievances.

The industrial action, which commenced this week, stems from the Federal Government's persistent failure to implement critical resolutions, including the 2012 National Industrial Arbitration Court judgment on nurses' welfare and remuneration. In a statement issued in Ilorin on Wednesday, State Secretary Markus Lucas affirmed: "Kwara nurses stand in solidarity with our national colleagues. We demand immediate action on the NIA ruling and other unresolved issues affecting healthcare delivery."

The strike part of a coordinated national protest highlights demands for improved working conditions, hazard allowances, and salary arrears. NANNM Kwara warned that escalation to an indefinite strike remains possible if the government ignores the ultimatum.

Others include upward review of professional allowances for nurses and midwives, adequate employment of nursing personnel and provision of essential health facility equipment and establishment of department of nursing in the Federal Ministry of Health.

The association is also demanding the inclusion of nurses in the leadership and policy making bodies of the health sector as well as fair representation of nurses in federal health institutions in the country.

The demands, the association argued, "are aimed at improving the quality of healthcare delivery, enhancing professional development and ensuring a better welfare system for Nigerian nurses.

"While the national struggle continues, we in Kwara State also face our own peculiar challenges and unresolved issues with the state government," even as the association commended Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq for his efforts and recent approval of a 25 percent salary upward review for nurses in the state.

"However, this is just one of the seven key demands previously submitted to the state government among other critical issues affecting nurses in Kwara State," the association added.

It listed the issues to include review of entry points for graduate nurses to reflect their level of training and qualifications, career progression pathways for nurses with single qualifications and teaching, call duty and rural allowances for nurses working in undeserved areas among others.

The association asserted that addressing the demands will significantly improve the welfare, motivation and working conditions of nurses in the state, which in turn will enhance healthcare services delivery across Kwara State.