Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi on Wednesday defended the government's record on protecting its citizens working abroad, stating that decisive actions, including the deregistration of hundreds of recruitment agencies, have created safer pathways for labour migration. His remarks, posted on social media on Wednesday, November 19, 2025, EAT, came in response to ongoing concerns over the welfare of Kenyans, especially domestic workers in Saudi Arabia, who face conditions described by rights groups as modern slavery.

Mudavadi emphasized that the government has undertaken "bold, deliberate, and forward-looking steps" to safeguard its people. A cornerstone of this strategy has been a crackdown on unethical recruitment firms. "One of the most decisive actions has been the deregistration of more than 600 rogue recruitment agencies," Mudavadi stated. This figure aligns with announcements made earlier in November 2025 by Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua, who confirmed the deregistration of 680 agencies for various violations. President William Ruto also affirmed this move on November 5, 2025, calling it a key part of ensuring safety and dignity for Kenyan workers.

In addition to the crackdown, Mudavadi highlighted the establishment of the State Department for Diaspora Affairs as a dedicated institution to support Kenyans abroad and the implementation of new bilateral labour agreements designed to secure fair wages and protect workers. He noted that over 430,000 Kenyans have benefited from these structured employment channels.

A Counter-Narrative of Exploitation

Despite the government's assurances, a starkly different picture is painted by human rights organizations and media reports. A May 2025 report by Amnesty International, based on the testimony of over 70 Kenyan women, documented harrowing experiences of abuse in Saudi Arabia, including deception by recruiters, inhumane working conditions, and situations amounting to forced labour and human trafficking. Amnesty Kenya's Executive Director, Irungu Houghton, described the situation as "modern slavery." The report criticizes Saudi Arabia's kafala (sponsorship) system, which ties a worker's legal status to their employer, creating a power imbalance that enables widespread abuse.

Human Rights Watch has also consistently reported on the perilous conditions for migrant workers in the Gulf, citing widespread labour abuses, unpaid wages, and inadequate protection from extreme heat. A January 2025 report from the organization noted that despite some reforms, abusive elements of the kafala system remain intact in both Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The Economic Stakes

The debate over worker welfare is intrinsically linked to Kenya's economy. Diaspora remittances are the nation's single largest source of foreign exchange, outperforming key sectors like tourism and agriculture since 2015. According to Mudavadi, remittances had surpassed the one trillion shilling mark by November 2025. Data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) corroborates this upward trend, with cumulative inflows for the 12 months leading to April 2025 reaching KSh 749.6 billion (approximately USD 4.997 billion). Projections for the full year suggest the total could exceed USD 5 billion for the first time, highlighting the critical importance of the diaspora, estimated at four million people, to Kenya's economic stability.

Government's Multi-Agency Approach

The government's response to the crisis has been a multi-pronged effort. In July 2025, CS Alfred Mutua announced a crackdown led by a new Labour Mobility Multi-Agency Response Team, involving the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), to tackle fraudulent recruiters. At that time, the task force had received 84 formal complaints reporting losses of KSh 17.3 million. By November, this had grown to at least 100 formal complaints.

To further regulate the sector, the government has urged prospective migrant workers to verify agencies through the National Employment Authority (NEA) website. Officials have also pursued diplomatic solutions. In early November 2025, Principal Secretary for Labour Shadrack Mwadime announced a partnership with Oman to establish a visa processing center in Nairobi to eliminate the misuse of tourist visas by rogue agents. Similarly, new directives from the Saudi government, set to take effect in February 2026, will establish a minimum salary of SAR 1,000 (approx. KSh 34,455) for all workers.

Mudavadi has also floated the idea of publicly "naming and shaming" fraudulent agents to increase accountability. While the government insists its measures are working, the continued reports of abuse from international rights groups and workers themselves indicate a deep and persistent gap between policy and the reality on the ground, placing the onus on officials to demonstrate the tangible impact of their reforms. FURTHER INVESTIGATION REQUIRED to obtain the complete list of the 680 deregistered agencies, which was not made public.