Belgium Faces Healthcare Desert by 2035, Warns Top Official
Belgium’s healthcare and social care system is heading toward a “desert of difficulties” between 2030 and 2035, according to a stark warning from Dr. Philippe Devos, Director General of Unessa, the federation representing nearly 900 non-profit healthcare and social services employing 60,000 people across Wallonia and Brussels. The warning came on Tuesday as thousands of non-profit sector workers demonstrated in Namur against Walloon government austerity measures.
A System Under Siege
Dr. Devos’ warning is not abstract. On the ground, creches are already being forced to close at 4 p.m. because the Office de la Naissance et de l’Enfance (ONE) only funds one childcare worker for every seven children from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., making extended hours financially unsustainable. As RTL Info reported, Laurence Antoine, Director of Financing at Groupe Jolimont, explained the practical impact: “If we had to close our creches at 4 p.m., since that’s what we’re subsidized for, it would mean asking parents to leave their jobs at 3 p.m.”
In Nivelles, one creche already has over 100 parents on a waiting list with no guarantee of obtaining a place. Some facilities are considering closing for a month in summer, reducing staff, or eliminating places entirely to cut costs.
The Broader Crisis
The childcare crisis is just one symptom of a wider systemic failure. Hospitals have been reporting negative balances since the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Red Cross recently issued an urgent appeal for blood donations, warning against “putting hospitals under tension” during the summer.
According to DH Les Sports, Dr. Devos specifically criticized the Bureau du Plan for excluding the non-profit sector from its economic analyses, calling this a systemic blind spot in policymaking. “Everyone knows it, but the sector is still cited nowhere in the analyses of the Bureau du Plan,” he said.
Austerity at Every Level
The crisis is being driven by cumulative austerity measures at federal, regional, and community levels. Walloon Minister-President Adrien Dolimont has announced 2 billion euros in additional savings needed to balance the regional budget by 2029. The cuts target APE (Aides à la Promotion de l’Emploi) and ACS (Agents Contractuels Subventionnés) programs — subsidies that fund employment in the non-profit sector.
As RTBF reported in April, Unessa warned that “the structures represented by Unessa and financed by public funds see their financial prospects melting like snow in the sun, with no vision for the medium or long term.” The federation called for transitional phases in implementing budget cuts and genuine consultation with sector actors.
Isabelle Meerhaeghe, Federal Secretary of CSC Namur-Dinant, summed up the sentiment at Tuesday’s demonstration: “Big savings that are made on the backs of people who ultimately need support.”
What Dr. Devos Is Asking For
Dr. Devos’ message to politicians is direct. Rather than hiding behind technical jargon about APE, IPM, and other acronyms, he wants policymakers to speak plainly about what services will be cut. “During the next three months of budget preparation, we want to explain the reality on the ground,” he said. “We want politicians to take responsibility and position themselves, and start talking about fewer services to the person, and no longer hide behind technical discourse.”
The Road Ahead
The tension between fiscal discipline and maintaining social services is at the heart of Belgian politics. The federal government under Bart De Wever is also pursuing austerity, creating multi-level pressure on the sector. The FGTB union has announced plans for protests and a possible general strike after summer 2026.
Unessa’s warning from April remains prescient: “Always doing better, even more, with always less is a delusion. It is urgent to stop unraveling our social safety net with short-term objectives. Let us not prepare today the social catastrophe of tomorrow.”
As Belgium faces demographic pressures from an aging population and increasing healthcare needs, the question is whether policymakers will heed these warnings before the desert period Dr. Devos predicts becomes reality.