NAIROBI, Kenya – The repatriation of dozens of Kenyans stranded in Myanmar and Thailand remains uncertain due to government budget constraints, raising concerns over the country’s ability to assist victims of human trafficking.
Labour and Social Protection Principal Secretary Joseph Motari informed Parliament that 44 Kenyans had sought help from the Kenyan Embassy in Thailand, but bringing them home remains a challenge due to funding shortfalls.
Appearing before the National Assembly’s Social Protection Committee on the 2025 Budget Policy Statement (BPS), Motari revealed that the ministry requires Sh80 million to implement the Kenya Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act and facilitate repatriation efforts.
However, the 2025-2026 budget has only allocated Sh20 million, leaving a Sh60 million deficit.
“This is the money we use for things like bringing home Kenyans stuck outside the country,” Motari told lawmakers.
Many of those stranded were lured abroad with promises of lucrative jobs that never materialized.
“We are told that there are still Kenyans in Myanmar languishing there without jobs. We are working closely with the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs to bring them back home,” Motari said.
This crisis is not new. Last year, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi told the Senate that the government had set aside Sh100 million for evacuating Kenyans seeking to return home.
At the time, 26,000 Kenyans were estimated to be in the Middle East, with over 7,000 registering for evacuation.
In August, the government repatriated 75 victims of human trafficking, including 10 Ugandans and one Burundian.
Many of those rescued recounted harrowing experiences of forced labour, abuse, and withheld wages—a grim reality for many migrants who fall victim to human trafficking networks.
With dwindling resources, the fate of the remaining 44 Kenyans in Myanmar and Thailand remains uncertain.
While the government says it is working to bring them home, the significant funding shortfall raises questions about how soon—if at all—this will happen.
For now, those stranded abroad can do little but wait, as the government scrambles to secure the necessary resources to rescue its citizens.
