Kenya has tied a new push for elderly-care jobs in the United States to strict worker protection rules and local training partnerships.
On Friday, the State Department for Diaspora Affairs (SDDA) signed a Joint Statement of Intent and Collaboration with LeadingAge Minnesota, an organization representing ageing-services providers in the US state. The preliminary deal sets the stage for a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to place Kenyan professionals in Minnesota’s elderly-care sector.
Unlike recruitment drives focused strictly on overseas job placements, the agreement embeds migrant worker safety and institutional cooperation from the start. Both sides discussed mechanisms to protect Kenyan workers abroad, addressing ongoing public concern over the welfare of citizens taking up foreign jobs.
Principal Secretary for Diaspora Affairs Roseline Njogu said the government is focused on building safe, structured pathways for international employment. She added that labor mobility should bring mutual benefits through skills development, knowledge and technology transfer, and diaspora engagement.
Under the proposed framework, Kenyan and Minnesota training institutions will establish partnerships to align geriatric care standards. The plan also includes professional exchanges to build local capacity alongside overseas recruitment.
LeadingAge Minnesota President and Chief Executive Officer Kari Thurlow led the US delegation at the signing ceremony, joined by representatives from Minnesota’s ageing-services industry. Minnesota House of Representatives member Huldah Momanyi Hiltsey also attended the event.
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