Patmoz
By Njeri Irungu
Nairobi — Kenya is sharpening its labour migration framework to safeguard citizens working abroad, even as countries across the East and Horn of Africa move to harmonise policies aimed at protecting migrant workers.
Labour Principal Secretary Shadrack Mwadime told journalists in Nairobi that more than 150,000 Kenyans have secured overseas jobs in the past three years. He said the government is keen to ensure that workers do not simply take up low-skilled jobs but also access professional opportunities that allow them to build expertise, make savings, and return home to invest.
“We want Kenyans to get good jobs, not just any jobs,” Mwadime said. “Our strategies are designed to safeguard their rights and welfare while also ensuring they can come back home safely if they face distress.”
Among the measures being advanced are the National Labour Mobility Policy and the Labour Migration Bill, which seeks to regulate recruitment agencies, create a welfare fund for distressed workers, and deploy more labour attachés abroad to monitor migrants’ welfare. The government is also aligning university curricula and vocational training with overseas market demand, so graduates are better positioned to secure jobs at the end of their studies.
Kenya is simultaneously negotiating bilateral labour agreements with popular destination countries, including those in the Gulf. Mwadime noted that while the United States remains the largest source of diaspora remittances, Saudi Arabia and other GCC nations account for the second-largest inflows, making their role central to Kenya’s labour migration agenda.
International Labour Organization (ILO) Chief Technical Advisor Aida Awel praised Kenya for leading the region in policy development. She highlighted that Kenya was the first country in the East and Horn of Africa to adopt a labour migration policy and has since developed a skills strategy to match migrants with global job opportunities.
“Kenya is doing well in terms of developing strategy and policy,” Awel said. “Our engagement with the media today is to ensure clear reporting on labour migration, so it is not confused with trafficking or asylum issues.”
Across the East and Horn of Africa, countries including Ethiopia, Somalia, Uganda and Tanzania are working with the ILO and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to harmonise approaches. A regional cooperation agreement signed in 2024 commits states to crack down on exploitative recruitment practices and align legal protections for migrant workers.
The region hosts nearly 4.7 million migrant workers, according to IOM, and remittances form a lifeline for households and national economies alike. In Kenya, inflows reached close to USD 5 billion in 2024, making diaspora remittances the country’s largest source of foreign exchange.
Yet challenges persist. Reports of abuse — particularly of domestic workers in Gulf states — continue to surface, including cases of withheld wages, confiscated passports, and excessive working hours. Human rights groups have urged East African governments to strengthen embassy support and accelerate ratification of international conventions that protect migrant workers.
Kenya has responded by signalling its intent to ratify two key ILO treaties — Convention 189 on domestic workers and Convention 190 on violence and harassment in the workplace. The Labour Migration Bill, now before Parliament, is expected to enshrine many of the protections outlined by officials at the Nairobi briefing.
For the region, the stakes are high. With over 75 percent of East Africa’s population under the age of 35, governments face the dual challenge of curbing unemployment at home while ensuring that those who seek opportunities abroad do so safely and with their rights protected.
As Mwadime put it: “This is the beginning of a journey. We want Kenyans, and indeed East Africans, to access international jobs in a structured and organised way — with dignity, safety, and hope for the future.”
