The Ministry of Labour and Social Protection has announced plans to recruit more labour attachés to countries with a high number of Kenyan migrant workers, particularly in the Middle East.  

Speaking during an interview on Spice FM on Thursday, March 20, Principal Secretary for Labour and Skills Development Shadrack Mwadime said the deployment aims to improve services for Kenyans living abroad and ensure their rights are protected.

Furthermore, the initiative is intended to boost labour mobility within the country.  

“We are sending labour out there to gain skills and knowledge, which they can bring back home. We call it labour mobility,” he said, adding that creating sufficient local jobs cannot be achieved overnight.  

Mwadime also highlighted an ongoing agreement with the International Labour Organization (ILO) aimed at enhancing the protection of migrant workers.  

“We are currently negotiating for human rights bilateral labour agreements based on the ILO model. We are using this model to secure better rights and ensure we get the most out of the agreements for our workers abroad,” said Mwadime.  

According to him, the government’s role will be to oversee the process and ensure that Kenyans working abroad are represented in a structured and organized manner.  

“The work of the government is to come in and guarantee that the interests of Kenyans working outside are safeguarded in an orderly way,” he said.  

His remarks come three months after Deputy President Kithure Kindiki and Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua flagged off the first cohort of nearly 300 Kenyans to Qatar under the Kazi Majuu program, a key government strategy for job creation.