Kenya has recorded a sharp rise in labour migration, with about 540,000 citizens securing employment abroad over the past four years, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has said.
The Prime CS maintained that the growing movement of Kenyan workers to international labour markets was creating new economic opportunities but also increasing the government's responsibility to protect migrants from exploitation, trafficking and unsafe working conditions.
Speaking at the fourth Employment and Labour Relations Annual Symposium and Exhibition at Strathmore University on Wednesday, Mudavadi said labour mobility had become an important component of Kenya's foreign policy and economic diplomacy.
“Recent records indicate that 540,000 Kenyans have secured employment abroad. That is in the last four years,” he said.
He added that diaspora remittances exceeded Sh645 billion in 2025, making them a major source of foreign exchange for the country.
Central Bank of Kenya data shows remittance inflows reached $5.037 billion in 2025, up from $4.945 billion in 2024. The figure has grown substantially over the past five years, from $3.094 billion in 2020 to more than $5 billion in 2025.
The latest data also shows the importance of remittances to Kenyan households. A 2025 survey by the Central Bank, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics and Financial Sector Deepening Kenya was designed to assess both inflows and outflows of remittances and their socio-economic impact.
The government was also expanding structured pathways for Kenyans seeking jobs overseas, including through the government's overseas employment programme and bilateral labour agreements with destination countries.
Kenya has labour mobility agreements in force with Germany, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, according to government records. Two additional agreements with Oman and Kuwait had been completed and were awaiting signing arrangements as of April 2026.
The Kenya-Germany agreement, signed in 2024, provides a framework covering skills development, social protection and the rights of Kenyan migrant workers.
The government has also continued to expand cooperation with Germany. On Tuesday, the State Department for Diaspora Affairs signed a memorandum of understanding with German institutions aimed at turning the Kenya-Germany migration partnership into practical opportunities for skilled Kenyan workers.
But the expansion of overseas employment has also brought concerns about recruitment fraud and worker protection.
Mudavadi said some Kenyans had been lured into unsafe jobs, fallen victim to rogue recruitment agents and human-trafficking networks, while others had been deceived into becoming combatants in foreign conflicts.
The government had shut down more than 600 recruitment agencies suspected of malpractice and was working to repatriate Kenyans trapped in conflict zones and scam compounds abroad.
The need for stronger protection comes as Kenya develops its labour migration system. The International Labour Organization says more than 103,800 Kenyans worked abroad in 2024/25, sending home about $4.9 billion, although the organisation noted that migration data had previously been held across different government institutions.
The government has also acknowledged gaps in the existing framework. Its 2026 progress report identified delays in approving the proposed Labour Mobility Management Bill as a challenge to regulating recruitment agencies, coordinating institutions and implementing labour mobility agreements.
Mudavadi urged Kenyans seeking jobs abroad to verify opportunities through official government channels, including the Ministry of Labour, the National Employment Authority and the State Department for Diaspora Affairs.
He also called for stronger mechanisms to resolve employment disputes involving Kenyan workers outside the country.
The symposium is addressing key issues affecting migrant workers, including labour migration, cross-border employment disputes, access to justice, alternative dispute resolution, judicial innovation and international labour standards.
The Prime CS concluded that the government would strengthen collaboration with the judiciary, employers, workers’ representatives, legal practitioners and development partners to promote safe, regular and orderly labour migration and improve protection for Kenyans working abroad.