Labour Cabinet Secretary Dr Alfred Mutua is set to face a parliamentary grilling over claims of regional bias in a recent foreign employment recruitment drive.
MPs have accused the Ministry of Labour of favouring counties in the Lower Eastern region—Mutua’s home area—at the expense of the rest of the country.
The controversy follows a report by the National Employment Authority (NEA) on a November 2024 recruitment exercise, which shows that Machakos, Makueni, and Kitui counties secured the majority of job placements.
Despite Kenya’s 47 counties, these three received what MPs are calling a “disproportionate share” of overseas job opportunities.
Data presented to the National Assembly Committee on Diaspora Affairs and Migrant Workers showed that Machakos registered 1,260 job seekers, with 752 placed; Kitui had 921 registrants and 901 placements; Makueni registered 506, with 410 placed.
Machakos also hosted 40 recruitment agencies—more than any other county.
MPs allege that the ministry orchestrated or allowed a process that unduly benefited Ukambani counties. Committee chairperson and Taita Taveta MP Lydia Haika termed the recruitment “unfair and exclusionary.”
Lamu East MP Ruweida Obo and Mombasa MP Zamzam Mohammed also questioned the selection criteria and the apparent exclusion of other regions.
Although the NEA supervised registration, MPs argue the Ministry of Labour controlled the recruitment logistics. NEA Director-General Edith Okoki has distanced the agency from the controversy, stating its role was limited to verifying employment agencies.
Parliament summoned Dr Mutua to appear on Monday, 23 June 2025. MPs are now calling for a review of recruitment procedures to ensure fairness and regional equity. The committee has also hinted at possible policy or legislative reforms to prevent future bias in foreign job placements.
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