CS Florence Bore Calls On IGAD Members To Address Labour Challenges

Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Labour and Social Protection, Hon. Florence Bore, has called on IGAD Member countries to strengthen partnerships and enhance regional collaboration in addressing Labour, Employment and Labour Migration challenges in the region.

Speaking during the IGAD’s 2^nd Ministerial Conference on Labour, Employment, and Labour Migration, the CS outlined Kenya’s aspirations to acquire a middle–income country status offering a high quality of life as envisaged in the Kenya Vision 2030.

“Attainment of this noble aspiration is however hinged on our Country’s ability to create sustainable employment and livelihoods for our people,” said the CS.

The IGAD conference comes at a time the unemployment rate in Kenya is soaring with the government putting in place such initiatives as supporting Medium and Small Enterprises (MSMEs) that employ about 86 percent of the Kenyan population.

Kenya’s economically active population stands at 50 million with the youth population accounting for 75.1 percent (35.7 million). While close to 1.2 million Kenyan youth join the labour market every year, the employment rate among the youth is still high at 13.84 percent compared with the national rate of 6.6 percent as of 2021.

“Realizing that youth unemployment is a regional problem, Kenya is currently carrying out an assessment of employment opportunities in the existing and potential labor markets, especially for the skilled/professional cadres outside Kenya. This is borne out of the recognition that opportunities for workers abroad can reduce pressure on our respective domestic labor markets,” said the CS.

According to the CS, IGAD members stand to benefit more if they worked as a unit other than competing against each other. She noted the immense potential among the youth within the IGAD region who have both innovative and entrepreneurial skills.

Kenya as an IGAD Member state is a country of origin, transit, and destination for migrant workers. Currently, there are 4 million Kenyans in the diaspora, with 92,000 in the IGAD region and 152,700 in EAC.

Sentiments by the CS come at a time the Central Bank of Kenya data showed that diaspora remittance from Kenyans in the diaspora for the year 2020 stood at USD 3.09 billion, out of which EAC contributed USD 41,308,400, with IGAD contributing USD 16,699,954.

“This clearly demonstrates the benefits of safe, regular, and humane labor migration to Kenya, and by extension to the IGAD region,” added the CS.

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