The government has set aside Sh100 million for evacuation of Kenyans stranded in the Middle East, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi told senators on Wednesday.
Mudavadi told the Senate none of the 26,000 Kenyans will be stranded in Lebanon in the wake of the country’s ongoing conflict with Israel.
“Through the Kenyan embassy in Kuwait, already an estimated 1,500 Kenyans have registered in need of government support including evacuation, which the government is keen to act on,” he said.
He said the government would go to great lengths to ensure the well-being of Kenyans worldwide.
Responding to queries during question time at the Senate, Mudavadi also Cabinet secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs said a strategy being developed to help Kenyans stranded in regions facing humanitarian crisis is at an advanced stage.
“We are working every day to ensure that we handle individual cases in the best way we can, but also we are faced with a dilemma of Kenyans who tell us that they believe the situation will calm down and they are hopeful that they can continue with their stay at the respective countries, including some in Lebanon,” explained Mudavadi.
Mudavadi told the Senate that the government remains committed to supporting Kenya’s embassies and missions across the world without overlooking any region.
“Our Kenyan embassies and missions worldwide remain steadfast in their commitment to promoting, projecting, and protecting Kenya’s image and national interests,” he stated.
On October 1 2024, Israel began an invasion of southern Lebanon in an escalation of the ongoing Israel–Hezbollah conflict, a result of the spill-over of the Israel–Hamas war.