From Alabuga Start programme to war frontline, Kenyans are victims of Russian excesses

Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua says he was unaware that Kenyans had been lured through false promises of employment in Russia and sent to the war front. [File, Standard]

Last week’s action by the government to deregister over 600 foreign job agencies came after Kenyan families expressed fears over their loved ones trapped in Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Government officials have, however, remained reluctant to comment on labour migration issues involving Russia and other Eastern European countries, choosing instead to respond only to cases affecting Kenyans who end up in the West—Canada, Germany, and the Middle East, particularly Qatar.