The COVID-19 pandemic has clearly underscored the urgent need to close the critical gap in health worker coverage. According to the The State of the World’s Nursing Report (2020) by the World Health Organization (WHO), the South-East Asia region is projected to have under 25 nurses per 10,000 people by 2030, below the WHO’s benchmark of 27.4 nurses per 10,000. The countries accounting for the largest shortages in 2018 included Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Pakistan and Nigeria.
