German government contradicts President Ruto on job opportunities for 250,000 Kenyans
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz receives Kenyan President William Ruto, in Berlin, Germany, September 13, 2024.
What you need to know:
- President Ruto had claimed that a total of 250,000 Kenyans are expected to get jobs in Germany.
- Part of the deal will see an unknown number of Kenyans who are in Germany illegally repatriated to Nairobi.
The German government has denied reports that 250,000 Kenyans had been granted entry into Germany following the signing of a labour agreement even as it emerges that an unknown number of illegal Kenyan immigrants in the European nation will be returned to Nairobi.
President William Ruto in a previous interview with German broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) had claimed that a total of 250,000 Kenyans are expected to get jobs in Germany following the signing of a labour agreement between both countries.
CNN on Saturday reported that a spokesperson for Dr Ruto’s office previously also said it was looking at employment opportunities for up to 250,000 Kenyans.
But Berlin authorities on Sunday denied the numbers, insisting that the pact did not state the exact number of skilled Kenyans who would be allowed into the country.
“This information is clearly false. The agreement between Germany and Kenya does not include any numbers or quotas of skilled workers who will have the opportunity to work in Germany. All applicants must fulfil the strict requirements of the German Skilled Immigration Act,” Germany's Federal Ministry of Interior and Community said on X.
It is also now emerging that part of the deal that President Ruto and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz signed will see an unknown number of Kenyans who are in Germany illegally repatriated to Nairobi.
One of the articles in the agreements states that Kenya is obligated to cooperate with Germany by issuing the necessary travel documents and receiving its citizens once they are kicked out by Berlin.
“The parties further commit to ensure that their nationals are duly received and readmitted, in full respect for the human right to return to one’s own country and the obligation of States to readmit their own nationals,” the pact reads in part.
“To this end, the parties shall cooperate on the identification of nationals and issuance of travel documents for safe and dignified return and readmission in cases of persons who do not have the legal right to stay on the other party’s territory” reads an Article in the agreement signed by both countries.”
Illegal migration has been a political problem in Germany and some political movements on Friday expressed reservations on the Kenya-Germany Comprehensive Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement (some German dispatches labelled it as 'MoU') for a pilot project on job placements, which seeks to plug some holes left by retiring ageing German workforce.
The agreement seeks to provide a framework for cooperation and information exchange on labour mobility, apprenticeships, student training, labour market needs, employment, employee welfare, and the readmission and return of workers.
Germany had been one of the most accommodative western Europeans to migrants but has struggled to tame the irregular flow.
Some 92,119 individuals illegally entered Germany between January and September of 2023, according to official figures. Others entered legally but overstayed.
There is a group that entered legally, then applied for asylum which was denied but then vanished into the country to dodge deportation.
But for Kenya, cases of those getting duped by labour agencies to other countries only to get stranded have been on the rise, especially in the Gulf countries.
President Ruto’s warning suggests the very agencies may also try their luck in the new deal, with Berlin being on the standby to kick them out in case they gain illegal entry.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the deal would only allow the qualified workers but "without a right to remain."
"We want to consistently enforce the repatriation of people without the right to remain. On the other hand, we want to attract qualified workers, which we urgently need." Mr Scholz posted on X platform.
