The Ministry of Labour has said a homecare worker, Diana Chepkemoi, has successfully returned to Kenya after previously working in Saudi Arabia.
Through a statement, Cabinet Secretary for Labour Simon Chelugui noted that the government will investigate the circumstances which led to her plight to prevent such incidences from happening in future.
“While we appreciate that she is now safely back home, the government will investigate circumstances which led to her plight to prevent such incidences from happening in future. The Ministry of Labour mission is the promotion of decent work, skills development and sustainable job creation. In the implementation of this mission, the government through the Ministry of labour created an authority-The National Employment Authority,” Chelugui said.
Chepkemoi, a Kenyan University student who was residing in Saudi Arabia where she had travelled in search of greener pastures has been rescued following a public outcry.
Kenyans on social media demanded her release from her paymasters in Saudi Arabia where she was stranded.
The Meru University student had been working as a housekeeper in Saudi Arabia due to lack of school fees, which had led to her deferring from school.
Her photos which circulated on different social media platforms showed that she was in bad condition as her body looked emaciated signalling suffering in the hands of her paymasters.
Yesterday, her family appealed for help from the government to bring her back home.
“I feel helpless that my daughter’s life is in danger in the hands of a foreigner in a faraway land and there is nothing I can do. I just want her home,” her mother said.
The ministry of labour stated the authority is expected to provide a comprehensive institutional framework for employment management; to enhance employment promotion interventions; and to enhance access to employment for youth, minorities and marginalized groups.
“One of the strategies employed by the government to enhance employment promotion is Labour Migration, borne out of the realization that Labour Migration has immense socio-economic benefits to both countries of origin and destination, since it is not only a source of employment and livelihoods for migrant workers, but also addresses skills gaps in destination countries and is a source of much-needed remittances to migrants’ countries of origin,” Chelugui said.
