Eight Kenyans have been detained in Benghazi, Libya, for over six weeks after a dispute over unpaid salaries escalated due to a language barrier. Families are now urgently appealing to the Kenyan government for intervention.

• The workers were arrested on March 21 after demanding two to three months of withheld salaries.
• Families have condemned the lack of assistance from employment agencies and are pleading with the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs.
• The detainees are being held at a detention centre in Benghazi, facing accusations of assaulting security officers.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has issued a stern warning regarding the escalating exploitation of Kenyans seeking employment abroad in four high-risk regions: Southeast Asia, Russia, Gulf countries, and North Africa.

• Over 751 Kenyans have been rescued from exploitation in Myanmar between 2022 and 2026.
• The warning comes from Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, who submitted a report on May 7 to the Senate Standing Committee on Labour Migration.
• Kenyans are being lured by organized, transnational, and technology-driven exploitation networks, with specific dangers including trafficking for sexual exploitation, forced cybercrime participation, and being misled into joining the conflict in Ukraine.

Kenya has repatriated over 751 citizens who were victims of illegal jobs abroad, with many facing difficult circumstances including jail time and exploitation.

• A total of 615 Kenyans have been repatriated from various countries, including Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, and India.
• The Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, Mudavadi, highlighted cases of human trafficking for sexual exploitation in India and irregular military recruitment in Russia.
• In an effort to combat these issues, the government has deregistered over 600 rogue recruitment agencies and has 87 individuals currently facing legal action for illegal recruitment.