Inside plans by MPs to protect the rights of Kenyan migrant workers
National Assembly's Diaspora and Migrant Workers Committee Chairperson Lydia Haika addresses Taveta residents in Taita Taveta County. She said lawmakers have outlined some of the steps they will take to end the suffering of Kenyans in Arab nations.
The newly formed National Assembly's Diaspora Affairs and Migrant Workers Committee has vowed to protect the rights of hundreds of
Kenyan migrant workers in the Middle East.
This comes as the number of Kenyans flying to Gulf countries for jobs increases.
Some of the workers have suffered at the hands of their employers, who make them work long hours and subject them to physical and sexual violence that sometimes leads to death.
Speaking in Mbololo, Taita Taveta County, the committee's chairperson, Lydia Haika, said lawmakers have outlined some of the steps they will take to end the suffering of Kenyans in Arab nations.
Ms Haika, the Taita Taveta woman representative, said the committee will champion critical reforms on the export of labour to protect Kenyans seeking jobs abroad.
She said the reforms will involve training domestic workers to equip them physically and psychologically for the work they expect to get in foreign countries.
Ms Haika said the committee has prioritised the plight of Kenyan migrant workers following reports of abuse and cruel treatment of domestic workers by their employers and recruiters in foreign countries.
"We have had many cases of our fellow Kenyans who are being mistreated by their employers while working abroad. Some are even killed and others become sick," she said.
She noted that the government will deal with agents recruiting Kenyans as domestic workers in the Middle East without following the law.
She acknowledged that rising unemployment and poverty levels in Kenya have prompted many young people to seek work abroad.
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates are the most common destinations for such workers.
"We will remain firmly committed to human rights and would spare no effort at changing the current situation because our people need these jobs. As they work in these foreign countries, the law will protect them," she said.
The committee will also protect the investments of those who remit money back home, she added.
"Some are being duped by their relatives by sending them money for non-existent projects. When they come back home they are shocked to learn that their money was squandered," she said.
Last week, Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua toured Saudi Arabia to learn more about the working conditions of Kenyans in the kingdom.
On his two-day tour, he met government officials, including his counterpart Faisal Bin Farhan Al-Saud. The two agreed to formulate proposals on improving the well-being of Kenyans working there.
