Countries With the Fastest Growth in Nurses and midwives per 1,000 (5-Year Change)

Name: Countries With the Fastest Growth in Nurses and midwives per 1,000 (5-Year Change)
Creator: The World Bank
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Change in Nurses and midwives per 1,000 over the five years to each country's latest year, in points (a share or rate is not shown as a % of itself). Only countries that rose are listed. Source: The World Bank (CC BY 4.0).

Summary

Paraguay rose the most: by 8.61, from 0.8 per 1,000 people to 9.41 per 1,000 people in the five years to 2022. South Africa is second (+5.1), followed by Antigua and Barbuda (+4.76). 113 countries rose over that period; the median change among them was +0.523.

#1: Paraguay · +8.61
Median: +0.523
Coverage: 113 countries
Data year: 2022
Last updated: 2026-11-14

Top 10: 5-year change (per 1,000 people). Bar chart of the top 10: 1. Paraguay 8.61; 2. South Africa 5.1; 3. Antigua and Barbuda 4.76; 4. Austria 4.17; 5. Namibia 3.45; 6. Guyana 2.9; 7. Chile 2.1; 8. Zambia 2.04; 9. Korea, Rep. 1.99; 10. Finland 1.92.

Full ranking

Countries With the Fastest Growth in Nurses and midwives per 1,000 (5-Year Change), 2022
Rank	Country	From	To	5-year change (per 1,000 people)
1	Paraguay	0.8	9.41	+8.61
2	South Africa	1.29	6.39	+5.1
3	Antigua and Barbuda	4.89	9.65	+4.76
4	Austria	7.11	11.3	+4.17
5	Namibia	1.94	5.39	+3.45
6	Guyana	1.02	3.93	+2.9
7	Chile	3.35	5.45	+2.1
8	Zambia	0.9	2.94	+2.04
9	Korea, Rep.	7.09	9.09	+1.99
10	Finland	12.1	14	+1.92
11	Ireland	12.9	14.8	+1.91
12	United States	11.6	13.4	+1.83
13	Luxembourg	12.1	13.7	+1.58
14	New Zealand	10.8	12.3	+1.54
15	Tajikistan	5.12	6.45	+1.34
16	Canada	9.93	11.3	+1.33
17	Hong Kong SAR, China	6.91	8.18	+1.26
18	Qatar	7.25	8.49	+1.24
19	Switzerland	17.5	18.8	+1.22
20	Romania	7.1	8.25	+1.15
21	Kenya	1.19	2.27	+1.08
22	United Kingdom	8.5	9.55	+1.05
23	Nepal	3.11	4.09	+0.982
24	Bosnia and Herzegovina	5.75	6.73	+0.98
25	Georgia	4.99	5.97	+0.978
26	China	2.69	3.67	+0.973
27	Equatorial Guinea	0.406	1.38	+0.969
28	Guatemala	1.31	2.27	+0.959
29	Croatia	7.04	8	+0.955
30	Germany	11.3	12.3	+0.94
31	Australia	12.5	13.5	+0.92
32	Iraq	1.73	2.65	+0.918
33	Iran, Islamic Rep.	1.97	2.88	+0.903
34	Belgium	12	12.9	+0.89
35	Thailand	2.68	3.57	+0.888
36	Portugal	7.13	8.01	+0.876
37	Argentina	3.89	4.75	+0.86
38	Central African Republic	0.245	1.1	+0.852
39	Türkiye	2.65	3.48	+0.836
40	Dominican Republic	1.29	2.06	+0.77
41	Uganda	1.51	2.27	+0.76
42	Montenegro	5.33	6.08	+0.749
43	Poland	5.66	6.33	+0.667
44	Italy	6.09	6.76	+0.666
45	Macao SAR, China	3.12	3.79	+0.661
46	Jordan	2.69	3.33	+0.646
47	Jamaica	0.981	1.62	+0.636
48	Norway	15.9	16.5	+0.63
49	Czechia	8.92	9.53	+0.61
50	Netherlands	11.1	11.7	+0.61
51	Mauritius	3.44	4.05	+0.604
52	Denmark	11.6	12.2	+0.6
53	Ecuador	1.93	2.51	+0.577
54	Zimbabwe	2.5	3.07	+0.575
55	Greece	3.57	4.11	+0.543
56	Barbados	3.12	3.67	+0.542
57	Mauritania	1.09	1.61	+0.523
58	Bolivia	1.1	1.62	+0.521
59	Slovenia	10	10.6	+0.52
60	Spain	5.9	6.41	+0.511
61	Saudi Arabia	6.08	6.56	+0.479
62	Mozambique	0.489	0.934	+0.445
63	Bhutan	1.62	2.05	+0.436
64	North Macedonia	5.08	5.52	+0.431
65	Ethiopia	0.804	1.22	+0.418
66	Israel	5.5	5.9	+0.4
67	Iceland	15.5	15.9	+0.39
68	Mongolia	3.85	4.22	+0.372
69	Syrian Arab Republic	1.4	1.76	+0.355
70	Sierra Leone	0.81	1.16	+0.353
71	United Arab Emirates	5.84	6.19	+0.348
72	Lebanon	1.58	1.92	+0.341
73	Congo, Dem. Rep.	0.839	1.17	+0.329
74	Algeria	2.21	2.51	+0.301
75	Serbia	6.39	6.69	+0.299
76	Cabo Verde	1.5	1.8	+0.298
77	India	1.43	1.72	+0.289
78	Timor-Leste	1.47	1.74	+0.267
79	Oman	4.39	4.66	+0.267
80	El Salvador	1.92	2.18	+0.264
81	Brunei Darussalam	6.35	6.62	+0.263
82	Panama	3.09	3.35	+0.252
83	Côte d'Ivoire	0.552	0.793	+0.241
84	France	9.19	9.42	+0.236
85	Eswatini	4.03	4.26	+0.234
86	Andorra	4.51	4.72	+0.214
87	Singapore	6.36	6.56	+0.2
88	Bangladesh	0.466	0.664	+0.198
89	Niger	0.226	0.421	+0.195
90	Trinidad and Tobago	3.91	4.11	+0.194
91	Colombia	1.35	1.54	+0.191
92	Nicaragua	1.39	1.57	+0.181
93	Sri Lanka	2.08	2.26	+0.178
94	Philippines	4.62	4.79	+0.17
95	Indonesia	3.09	3.24	+0.151
96	Bahrain	2.5	2.65	+0.15
97	Mexico	2.88	3.03	+0.145
98	Tanzania	0.556	0.693	+0.137
99	Malaysia	3.95	4.05	+0.108
100	Eritrea	1.44	1.54	+0.106

Showing the top 100 of 113. Premium downloads the full list as CSV or JSON.

About the top 10

#1 Paraguay

Paraguay ranks #1 on this list with +8.61.

Capital: Asunción
Continent: South America
Income group: Upper middle income
Population: 7.01 million people (2025)
GDP: US$49.28 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$7,027 (2025)
Life expectancy: 74 years (2024)
Urban population: 70.4% of population (2025)

Also ranks #8 in official exchange rate · #11 in income share of richest 10% · #14 in gini index.

Full country profile

#2 South Africa

South Africa ranks #2 on this list with +5.1.

Capital: Pretoria, Cape Town
Continent: Africa
Income group: Upper middle income
Population: 64.75 million people (2025)
GDP: US$427.18 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$6,598 (2025)
Life expectancy: 66.3 years (2024)
Urban population: 63.8% of population (2025)

Largest cities: City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality, Johannesburg, Cape Town.

Also ranks #2 in unemployment rate · #2 in youth unemployment rate · #2 in income share of richest 10%.

Full country profile

#3 Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda ranks #3 on this list with +4.76.

Continent: North America
Income group: High income
Population: 94,209 people (2025)
GDP: US$2.34 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$24,819 (2025)
Life expectancy: 77.8 years (2024)
Urban population: 24.3% of population (2025)
International tourist arrivals: 384,500 arrivals (2020)

Also ranks #1 in immunisation (dpt) rate · #4 in completion rate (primary) · #6 in electricity access rate.

Full country profile

#4 Austria

Austria ranks #4 on this list with +4.17.

Capital: Vienna
Continent: Europe
Income group: High income
Population: 9.21 million people (2025)
GDP: US$579.47 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$62,930 (2025)
Life expectancy: 82 years (2024)
Urban population: 69.7% of population (2025)

Largest cities: Vienna.

Also ranks #3 in bank accounts share (adults) · #5 in government revenue share of gdp · #5 in atms per 100,000 adults.

Full country profile Weather in Vienna (Purr Weather)

#5 Namibia

Namibia ranks #5 on this list with +3.45.

Capital: Windhoek
Continent: Africa
Income group: Lower middle income
Population: 3.09 million people (2025)
GDP: US$15.08 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$4,876 (2025)
Life expectancy: 67.5 years (2024)
Urban population: 50.9% of population (2025)

Also ranks #1 in women in ministerial positions share · #2 in tax revenue share of gdp · #4 in education expenditure share of gdp.

Full country profile

#6 Guyana

Guyana ranks #6 on this list with +2.9.

Capital: Georgetown
Continent: South America
Income group: High income
Population: 835,990 people (2025)
GDP: US$27.1 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$32,414 (2025)
Life expectancy: 70.3 years (2024)
Urban population: 26.5% of population (2025)

Also ranks #1 in gdp growth rate · #1 in industry value added share of gdp · #1 in livestock production index.

Full country profile

#7 Chile

Chile ranks #7 on this list with +2.1.

Capital: Santiago
Continent: South America
Income group: High income
Population: 19.86 million people (2025)
GDP: US$357.37 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$17,995 (2025)
Life expectancy: 81.4 years (2024)
Urban population: 89.2% of population (2025)

Largest cities: Santiago, Santo Domingo.

Also ranks #5 in mineral rents share of gdp · #7 in school enrolment (tertiary) · #10 in fish production.

Full country profile

#8 Zambia

Zambia ranks #8 on this list with +2.04.

Capital: Lusaka
Continent: Africa
Income group: Lower middle income
Population: 21.91 million people (2025)
GDP: US$28.88 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$1,318 (2025)
Life expectancy: 66.5 years (2024)
Urban population: 45.9% of population (2025)

Largest cities: Lusaka.

Also ranks #2 in mineral rents share of gdp · #3 in gini index · #4 in prevalence of undernourishment.

Full country profile

#9 Korea, Rep.

Korea, Rep. ranks #9 on this list with +1.99.

Capital: Seoul
Continent: Asia
Income group: High income
Population: 51.69 million people (2025)
GDP: US$1.87 trillion (2025)
GDP per person: US$36,227 (2025)
Life expectancy: 83.6 years (2024)
Urban population: 81.2% of population (2025)

Largest cities: Seoul, Busan, Incheon.

Also ranks #1 in hospital beds per 10,000 · #2 in atms per 100,000 adults · #2 in researchers in r&d per million.

Full country profile Weather in Seoul (Purr Weather)

#10 Finland

Finland ranks #10 on this list with +1.92.

Capital: Helsinki
Continent: Europe
Income group: High income
Population: 5.65 million people (2025)
GDP: US$317.04 billion (2025)
GDP per person: US$56,149 (2025)
Life expectancy: 82.3 years (2024)
Urban population: 74.5% of population (2025)

Also ranks #1 in rule of law score · #2 in bank accounts share (adults) · #2 in control of corruption score.

Full country profile Weather in Helsingfors (Purr Weather)

Profile facts: World Bank (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0); weather links go to Purr Weather, another ChowChow Labs site.

Source and method

Change in Nurses and midwives per 1,000 over the five years to each country's latest year, in points (a share or rate is not shown as a % of itself). Only countries that rose are listed.

Source: The World Bank, indicator SH.MED.NUMW.P3. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Retrieved: 2026-11-14.

The World Bank: Nurses and midwives (per 1,000 people): Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO) (via World Development Indicators)

Original data provider, as recorded by the World Bank: Global Health Workforce Statistics, World Health Organization (WHO); Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Country data.

Values are shown as published (changes are computed from the published values). Provider terms: The World Bank. All licences: Sources & licences.

Summary

Full ranking

About the top 10

#1 Paraguay

#2 South Africa

#3 Antigua and Barbuda

#4 Austria

#5 Namibia

#6 Guyana

#7 Chile

#8 Zambia

#9 Korea, Rep.

#10 Finland

Related rankings

Source and method