Situation Analysis

Human trafficking in Kenya remains a serious, complex and evolving challenge, deeply intertwined with labour migration, economic vulnerability and systemic gaps in protection. Kenya continues to function as a source, transit and destination country for trafficking, with exploitation occurring both within the country and across international borders. Despite sustained efforts by the Government and its retention at Tier 2 in the 2025 U.S. Trafficking in Persons Report, Kenya still does not fully meet the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking. While progress has been recorded in investigations, prosecutions and convictions, persistent gaps remain in victim protection, labour migration governance and long-term reintegration. The 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report reflects a mixed trajectory. The Government investigated 42 trafficking cases in 2024, up from 22 in the previous year, and prosecuted 44 cases compared to 19 previously. Convictions rose to at least 21, with the majority relating to forced labour. These improvements reflect growing enforcement capacity, but they also point to the scale of trafficking, much of which remains hidden. Labour exploitation continues to dominate Kenya’s trafficking landscape, affecting both adults and children across multiple sectors.

Kenya’s trafficking challenge cannot be separated from its current economic realities. While official unemployment rates remain relatively low, they mask a deeper crisis of underemployment and poor-quality jobs, particularly among young people. The majority of Kenyans—over 80 percent—work in the informal economy, where incomes are unstable and social protection is minimal. Increasing taxation and a difficult business environment have placed additional strain on small enterprises, which form the backbone of this sector, limiting their ability to create and sustain jobs. As livelihoods become more precarious, frustration and economic pressure are growing, especially among the youth. This has led to a sense of apathy and urgency to seek opportunities elsewhere, making labour migration an increasingly attractive option, even when the risks are known. In this context, economic vulnerability is directly feeding into unsafe migration pathways and heightening exposure to human trafficking. Labour migration has therefore become both an economic necessity and a major vulnerability pathway. Thousands of Kenyans migrate annually in search of employment, particularly to the Middle East and Gulf States. While migration offers opportunities for income generation, it also exposes workers—especially women in domestic and care work—to high levels of exploitation.

Reports of contract substitution, confiscation of passports, unpaid wages, excessive working hours and abuse remain widespread. The 2025 TIP Report notes that more than 200,000 Kenyans are working in Saudi Arabia alone, and at least 274 Kenyan migrant workers have died there over the past five years. These figures highlight the human cost of weak migration governance and insufficient protection systems. At the same time, Kenya has adopted an ambitious labour migration agenda, positioning labour export as a key economic strategy. Remittances from Kenyans abroad have grown significantly and have now overtaken traditional foreign exchange earners such as coffee, tea and tourism. However, this expansion has not been matched with adequate investment in governance, regulation and protection systems. The labour migration programme appears insufficiently prepared for its scale, with gaps in oversight of recruitment agencies, weak enforcement, and limited investment in pre-departure preparation, consular protection, labour attaches, shelter and post-return support. As a result, the rapid expansion of labour migration is outpacing the systems designed to protect workers, thereby increasing exposure to trafficking and exploitation.

Emerging trafficking patterns further illustrate the changing nature of the threat. Unlike in the past where traffickers targeted those with little education or lacking formal employment skills, Incidences of well educated young men falling prey to traffickers are on the increase.  Organized criminals and traffickers are increasingly using digital platforms and social media to recruit victims into fraudulent job opportunities abroad. A growing number of Kenyans have been trafficked to Southeast Asia, particularly through Thailand into Myanmar, where they are forced into online scam operations under conditions of confinement, coercion and violence. In addition, there are deeply concerning reports of Kenyans being recruited through deceptive means to participate in the Russia–Ukraine conflict, with some losing their lives on the frontlines. These developments point to new forms of trafficking involving forced criminality and exposure to armed conflict, requiring urgent attention within national policy and legal frameworks.

Kenya has established a strong legal foundation through the Counter-Trafficking in Persons Act, which criminalizes all forms of trafficking and provides for prevention, protection and prosecution. The law includes provisions for victim assistance, coordination mechanisms and penalties for offenders, and recognizes the importance of pre-departure orientation for migrant workers through the National Industrial Training Authority and regulation of private recruitment agencies through the National Employment Authority. In addition, there is a labour migration management policy and a Victim’s Assistance Trust Fund in place.  Two mechanisms of support i.e the Counter Trafficking in Persons Secretariat and its Advisory Board exist as well as the  new Directorate of Labour Migration working under the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection. However,  the gap between policy and implementation remains significant, and is made worse by systemic poor labour migration governance, corruption, impunity and a pending bill on Labour Migration Management that may never see the light of day given the time it has taken. One of the most critical and insufficiently addressed challenges is the situation of returnees, including victims of trafficking. Many individuals who return to Kenya—whether rescued, deported or having escaped exploitation—face profound challenges in reintegrating into society. Structured reception and reintegration systems are extremely limited, and the majority of services are provided by poorly resourced civil society organizations.

The Victims Assistance Trust Fund remains underfunded and unable to effectively support service providers, leaving survivors without adequate care. Many returnees therefore return to communities without livelihoods, support systems or pathways for recovery. The psychosocial impact on returnees is increasingly evident and poses a potential national concern. Many survivors experience trauma, anxiety, depression and other mental health challenges, often without access to appropriate care. Without structured intervention, these challenges can deepen into a wider social and public health issue. At the same time, returnees from environments such as scam compounds may have been exposed to coercive criminal practices over extended periods. Some may return with harmful skills and coping mechanisms that, if not addressed through rehabilitation and reintegration programmes, could pose risks both to themselves and to their communities. These realities highlight a major gap in current responses. There is little structured effort to rehabilitate returnees, support them to unlearn harmful exposure, and reintegrate them safely into society. The absence of such support increases the risk of re-trafficking, continued exploitation, or the transfer of harmful practices into local environments.

Social reintegration is further complicated by stigma and shame. Many survivors return to communities where they are misunderstood or judged, particularly women and girls who have experienced abuse. Without deliberate efforts to support acceptance and reintegration, survivors remain isolated and vulnerable. At the same time, survivors themselves are increasingly organizing and forming groups to advocate for their rights. These survivor-led initiatives represent an important shift in the response to trafficking, bringing lived experience into advocacy and policy spaces. However, they remain under-resourced and require sustained support from government, donors and partners. Civil society organizations continue to play a central role in Kenya’s response, often filling critical gaps in service delivery and advocacy. Networks such as the Network Against Human Trafficking and Smuggling of Migrants (NAHUSOM), which brings together approximately 25 member organizations, provide important platforms for coordination and collective action. These networks are essential in ensuring that responses remain grounded in survivor realities and in strengthening collaboration across sectors.

The ongoing public participation process in the review of the Counter-Trafficking in Persons Act presents a critical opportunity to strengthen Kenya’s response. It offers a platform to address both structural and emerging challenges, including economic vulnerability, labour migration governance, cyber-enabled trafficking, forced participation in armed conflict, and the urgent need for comprehensive reintegration systems. At the same time, Kenya is poised to ratify two key ILO conventions i.e C189 & C190 to further ensure decent work for domestic workers and fight violence and harassment at the workplace.

In conclusion, human trafficking in Kenya cannot be understood in isolation from the broader economic context. High levels of informal employment, limited decent work opportunities, and increasing economic pressure are driving labour migration and, in turn, heightening vulnerability to trafficking. Addressing this challenge will require a more comprehensive and well-resourced approach that goes beyond enforcement to tackle root causes, strengthen protection systems, and ensure that survivors are supported not only to return, but to rebuild their lives with dignity, safety and opportunity.