A record 56 nurse educators and heads of department from 28 institutions across 13 African countries attended the May Children’s Nursing Educators Forum.

The meeting marked the launch of data collection for the 2026 Children’s Nursing Training Observatory, the purpose of which is to support stakeholders leading health workforce planning, investment, and policy development through the dissemination of children’s nursing training data in Africa.

The information gathered on children’s nursing training programmes is collated into an interactive dashboard, programme directory, and summary report, with educators invited to submit updated data by 12 June.

Discussions underscored the importance of “knowing the numbers”—such as student enrolment, throughput, and educator capacity—to inform decision-making and strengthen advocacy. The visual presentation of the data was highlighted as particularly powerful in strengthening communication, supporting evidence-based discussions, and motivating increased training capacity. It was recognised as a valuable tool for engaging stakeholders, including ministries of health, academic leaders, and funders, to advocate for children’s nursing training needs.

At the same time, key challenges were highlighted. These include ongoing shortages of trained children’s nurses and qualified educators, and a limited number of accredited training programmes in some contexts, particularly in South Africa. Participants also noted the difficulty of recruiting educators who combine both clinical expertise and academic qualifications, within a context of a high population of children with increasingly complex healthcare needs.

We look forward to the release of the 2026 Observatory report in October!