President Ruto pledges 3-5k weekly jobs abroad

On 19th November 2023, President Ruto promised to secure 3,000-5000 jobs weekly for Kenyans seeking to work abroad.

On July 16, 2025, government reported that more than 400,000 young Kenyans had secured jobs abroad through the government labour mobility programme. However, a lot of concerns have been raised, including scams that have emerged over the jobs abroad, and recruitment of Kenyans (February 2026) into armies across the world (including the Russian army) to fight in wars without prior and informed consent.
On 5th February 2026, President Ruto said his government has helped more than 500,000 Kenyan youths secure jobs abroad over the past three years as part of efforts to tackle unemployment and boost foreign income; with between 300 and 500 youths leaving the country every week to take up jobs overseas.
However, this has faced major criticism and concerns about the protection rights of the people who go abroad against abuse being weak and questions of whether shipping these many skilled people abroad will lead to a brain drain crisis in Kenya.

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This Promise Tracker is an independent civic-accountability tool designed to monitor and document the progress of public commitments made by the Government of Kenya. Information presented on this platform is compiled from publicly available sources including government publications, parliamentary records, policy documents, and credible media reports. The classifications used in this tracker represent an evidence-based assessment by the platform’s researchers and should be understood as analytical judgments rather than official government determinations. While every effort is made to ensure accuracy and regular updates, the status of promises may evolve as new information becomes available. This website is not affiliated with or operated by the Government of Kenya.

Last updated: May 18, 2026 12:20 pm