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Speaking at a press briefing recently, Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary, Musalia Mudavadi acknowledged the magnitude of the crisis and said the government is pursuing bilateral interventions with Saudi Arabia to repatriate the affected mothers and children.
The ministry revealed that under a programme called 'Mobile Consular Services,' DNA tests have been conducted on 707 individuals, including children, to verify parentage and process birth certificates to enable repatriation.
A Joint Interdepartmental Working Group (JIWG), formed in January 2025 and including the Kenyan Embassy as well as Saudi ministries of Foreign Affairs, Labour, Interior and the General Directorate of Passports, is assisting these efforts.
So far, the process has resulted in the safe repatriation of 59 mothers and 73 children.
The plight of these families is rooted in legal and administrative difficulties.
Kenya's law allows for registration of births abroad, but Saudi Arabia's legal regime requires a marriage certificate to issue a birth certificate, and strong penalties apply for extramarital sex.
It is reported that many Kenyan single mothers, fearful of legal consequences, deliver children at home and avoid hospitals, leaving children undocumented and vulnerable.
The Kenyan government has also noted that more than 400 Kenyans have been lured abroad by recruitment agents promising lucrative jobs in countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar, only to find themselves stranded, trafficked or forced into unpaid labour.
The foreign ministry emphasised that stranded mothers should engage with Kenyan diplomatic missions in Riyadh and Jeddah or the State Department for Diaspora Affairs in Nairobi to regularise their status and secure documentation for their children.
The government also reminded Kenyan parents abroad to register births of children abroad in order to protect their rights.
Rania Umutoni
Source : https://en.igihe.com/news/article/lack-of-documents-leaves-kenyan-mothers-and
