The National Qualifications Framework (NQF) and the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) were established in August 2020. As a result of the implementation of these two frameworks, a number of career opportunities have been created in the field of health care and allied healthcare, which were previously untapped. With the introduction of the NQF, a number of new professionals were able to enter the field with their qualifications, thereby increasing the supply of healthcare professionals. On the other hand, the SAQA was able to bring together a number of different health careers into one framework, thus increasing the competitiveness of the medical sector.

The NQF was developed after consultations between the stakeholders from South Africa and the countries of the region. These consultations included the participation of health care professionals from the region as well as health care administrators in order to establish criteria for the qualification requirements of healthcare professionals. This was followed by an extensive evaluation process in order to determine the level of competency that the healthcare professionals had and the corresponding salary that they would receive. The final document that was finalized was called the Qualifications Framework and this is the document that governs the eligibility of health professionals to work in South Africa. It has also laid out the minimum competencies and educational qualifications that are required of healthcare workers to work in the health sector.

The SAQA aims to promote an environment where the workforce is well educated and qualified in terms of health care, thereby ensuring that the quality of healthcare that the country gets will be ensured. This has meant that there is a lot more competition for healthcare professionals from the health sector as well as the private sector. The health sector in South Africa is highly dependent on the export of health professionals to various countries in the region. In recent years, the number of health professionals coming from the countries that are not only skilled but also from countries that are less developed has increased. The qualification requirements for a healthcare professional in South Africa are now even more stringent and as such there are many more opportunities for health professionals in the health care industry.