In Kenya, President William Ruto encourages young people to emigrate

Kenyan drivers will drive buses in Germany. On September 12, Stella Mokaya, Kenya’s ambassador to Berlin, announced that 3,000 drivers would soon be sent to work in the Federal Republic, which, with its ageing population, is structurally short of workers to fill certain positions. They will be employed by Aktiv Bus Flensburg, the company responsible for managing the transport network in Flensburg, a city of 100,000 inhabitants on the border with Denmark.

The two countries are planning further agreements in the energy, trade, education and transport sectors. The announcement of the imminent arrival of 3,000 bus drivers preceded the visit of Kenyan President William Ruto to Germany on 13 and 14 September. During his trip, the Head of State announced that 250,000 jobs had been secured for young graduates in his country, before being contradicted by the German Interior Minister, who recalled that an agreement had been signed, but without a precise quota.

The fact is that this association illustrates an underlying trend: Kenya is encouraging its young people, skilled or not, to leave the country to seek job opportunities elsewhere. William Ruto has put forward the figure of 5,000 Kenyans travelling abroad every week. “He is the first president to make the export of workers an assumed public policy. The measure is at the top of his political agenda. This is unprecedented.”says political analyst Njahira Gitahi.

Endemic unemployment

In addition to Germany, Nairobi has signed agreements with several states on the Arabian Peninsula and Canada. In May 2023, a health jobs agreement was signed with the American giant, and the Kenyan president promised to send doctors, nurses and physiotherapists there as the Canadian population ages. “Kenya’s workforce is our greatest resource. They are well-trained and hard-working. Even as we invest in sectors that will create jobs at home, opportunities for Kenyans abroad are another way to uplift our youth.”William Ruto said at the time.

Why multiply such agreements? “It is a way to keep the youth away, especially those who demonstrated in June and July against the Finance Bill. William Ruto will kick them out before it is approved at the polls in 2027,” believes Njahira Gitahi. Political journalist Dauti Kahura shares this analysis: “After two years in power, William Ruto is extremely unpopular, especially among “Generation Z” [la génération Z, née entre la fin des années 1990 et le début des années 2010]. Promising jobs for young people abroad are a response to recent protests. »

Above all, according to him, expatriating young Kenyans is “a good way for the head of state to distance himself from the group most likely to prevent his re-election in 2027”. Dauti Kahura recalls that “Young people aged 18 to 25 represent 65% of the electorate” and so? “While Kenyans in the diaspora have a right to participate in elections, the system for doing so actually makes it difficult.”

Another reason: endemic unemployment. Around 35% of young Kenyans are unemployed. Many drop out of university without finding work and many of them, for lack of better conditions, take up jobs for which they are overqualified. “The issue of mass unemployment is an old one and does not date back to Ruto’s presidency. However, the president must give the impression that he is trying to find a solution to this problem. Saying that he is negotiating job opportunities abroad is his response.”estimates Dauti Kahura.

Currency transfers

During the 2022 election campaign, William Ruto continued to present himself as the candidate of the “little people” in the eyes of the elites. “He developed a narrative focused entirely on unemployed youth, particularly “swindlers” [travailleurs de l’économie informelle], but without ever saying that he intended to send people abroad. This argument appeared when he came to power.”deciphers Njahira Gitahi.

Another explanation can be found in foreign exchange transfers. According to the Central Bank of Kenya, the diaspora sent, in 2023, 671 billion Kenyan shillings (around 3.8 billion euros at the time) to the country. Kenyans living in the United States contributed more than half, followed by those living in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Saudi Arabia. “It’s certainly a way to bring money to Kenya”Judge Dauti Kahura. Especially since the heavily indebted country is struggling to repay its debts to international donors.

Njahira Gitahi has doubts about the long-term effects of this policy: “In school, Kenyans were taught that brain drain was a danger to the country, that it was depriving it of its doctors and engineers. I find it difficult to see how we can build a nation if we deprive it of its living forces.”