Kenya is lobbying Saudi Arabia to lift travel restrictions imposed after an isolated Ebola report, aiming to unlock 293,600 jobs promised by Saudi recruitment agencies.
Labour Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua raised the border closure during high-level talks in Riyadh on Thursday, November 12, 2026. He told Saudi Vice Minister for Labour Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser Abuthnain that health authorities had isolated the single case that triggered the ban and recorded no community transmission.
Mutua said Nairobi wants full market access restored quickly so Kenyans can take up the newly committed roles under the government's Kazi Majuu overseas employment program. Kenya's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Joseph Masila, and senior officials from both nations attended the meeting.
Beyond reopening borders, the talks centered on fixing long-standing pay and welfare gaps for Kenyans in the Gulf kingdom. Saudi officials agreed to explore ways to make Kenyan pay packages more competitive, though neither government announced specific new salary rates or a revised minimum wage.
Mutua confronted Saudi authorities over the treatment and working conditions of Kenyans already employed in the country. A May 2025 Amnesty International report documented widespread abuses against Kenyan workers, including unpaid wages, excessive hours, physical abuse, restricted movement, and employers confiscating passports.
The same report revealed heavy financial burdens on job seekers.
