NOS
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 20:35
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Elles van Gelder
correspondent Afrika
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Elles van Gelder
correspondent Afrika
Kenya wants to send more women to the Gulf states as domestic help. Growing labor migration is good for the economy, because all those Kenyans transfer money home. But women pay a high price for this.
She sometimes picked up a joke, the boss of Brenda Odhiambo (26) in Saudi Arabia. To hit her with the stick when she complained about her sometimes eighteen-hour working days. “She treated me like her property, like a slave and used everything to hit me.”
Six months earlier, the Kenyan had taken the opportunity to earn money for her family in Kenya. An agency in Kenya that recruits women as migrant workers promised her a good family to work for in Saudi Arabia. She only received her contract at the airport and was largely in Arabic.
Immediately after arrival, her passport was taken by a local representative. She gave it to her employer. “The lady of the house literally said, ‘I bought you,’” says Odhiambo. “I was seen as a commodity. It was hell.”
Now, back in Kenya, she shares her story as much as possible, hoping it will deter women from leaving. Because many want to leave.
‘No other choice’
In a suburb of Nairobi, dozens of women stand in a large kitchen at a domestic science school. Rice and chicken are what they like in Saudi Arabia, says an instructor. The government has made it mandatory for women to be trained before they leave.
21-year-old Vivian Katimo is one of the students. She cleans the bottom of a plastic doll with a baby wipe. “I have no other choice. I have to earn money for my daughter. There are few jobs here and they are poorly paid.”
NOSVivian with her practice dummy. She wants to go to Saudi Arabia
The demand for Kenyan assistants is high, because we are known as hard workers, says the school’s director, Edith Muronga. “The demand is high, it can’t be stopped.” Over the past four years, she has trained 15,000 women to work abroad.
The employment contracts are for two years. The figures for the number of migrant workers currently deployed vary. In 2022, authorities quoted a figure of 80,000 Kenyans in the Gulf countries. In March there were already 170,000 and in August 200,000, of whom 151,000 work as aid. Men also go for simple jobs, such as drivers and security guards.
President wants more
The government wants it to grow even faster. President Ruto recently said he wants 350,000 Kenyans in Saudi Arabia and wants to sign bilateral agreements on migration with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
It’s a way to show he’s tackling high unemployment without creating jobs at home. And to get money into the country. In 2022, a record amount of more than $4 billion was sent home by the Kenyan diaspora. It brings in more than major export products such as tea.
While the government is pushing, the organization Kituo Cha Sheria is trying to stop the migration. Lawyer John Mwariri leafs through a thick file with victims’ stories. “This woman was burned by her employer.” He points to a photo of horrible wounds on an arm. “Our government is pushing them into slavery.”
NOSMwariri maintains these types of folders, with photo evidence of injuries to housekeepers
More women in the Gulf States means more women becoming victims of abuse. This often involves taking away passports, long working hours and little salary. Many women feel trapped. According to a international research more than 60 percent experience physical or sexual violence.
These outrages have been happening for much longer. A few years ago it even led to a temporary migration stop in Kenya. But the government says that measures have been taken to protect the women, such as a hotline. There are also rules about minimum wages and working hours, but these are not adhered to. In practice, women see little of this in any case.
‘Women are on their own’
It is difficult to monitor what happens behind closed doors in the families where they work, says Mwariri, but help if things go wrong can be better arranged. “Now the women have nowhere to go and are on their own.”
After her abuse, Brenda sought help from her contacts in Kenya and Saudi Arabia, but they did not respond. And when she stood at the gate of the Kenyan embassy, she was turned away.
NOS Courses like these prepare women for a life as a housekeeper abroad
At home economics school they continue with the next part. Cleaning a glass table without leaving streaks. “Good preparation can protect them,” says the director. “Good work hopefully means a satisfied employer.”
Newbie Vivian knows the stories about abuse, but it doesn’t stop her. Despair drives this single mother. “Hopefully I will find a good boss.” She will know in a few weeks whether that is correct.
2023-12-19 19:35:17
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