President William Ruto’s recent directive ordering foreign nationals, more particularly Burundians out of small-scale businesses risks driving some migrants away from visible and regulated livelihoods into clandestine economic activities.
A coalition of civil society and faith-based organizations in Kenya – dedicated to combating human trafficking, migrant smuggling, and modern-day slavery – is even cautioning that if implemented, the directive is likely to create new security and trafficking vulnerabilities, while threatening Kenya’s hard-won gains in East African integration,
Under the umbrella NAHUSOM- the Network Against Human Trafficking and Smuggling of Migrants, the organisatins says the September 3 directive, which gives foreign nationals operating businesses such as hawking, street vending, salons and small retail outlets 90 days to regularise their status before enforcement, could have consequences far beyond protecting Kenyan traders from competition.
“By abruptly removing livelihoods without clear pathways for affected migrants to transition into lawful economic activity, the Government could push some people into informal and hidden networks that are harder for authorities to monitor, regulate or tax,” Mutuku Nguli, the Chief Executive Officer Counter Human Trafficking Trust East Africa (CHTEA) warned.
He pointed out that the 24-member NAHUSOM acknowledges the Government’s responsibility to protect Kenyan businesses and regulate who is permitted to engage in particular categories of trade.
However, he warned further that a blanket approach could produce the opposite of the intended security outcome by making some migrants less visible to authorities and increasing their vulnerability to exploitation by criminal networks.
“We are particularly concerned about refugees, asylum seekers and other migrants whose livelihoods depend on small-scale commerce,” he said, noting that losing legitimate businesses and income, could increase exposure to trafficking, forced labour, debt bondage, extortion and trafficking for forced criminality.
The directive, the organisations emphasised could also undermine Kenya’s regional economic interests, which Kenyan traders, professionals and small businesses have benefited from, due to the freer movement of people and commerce within the region.
“NAHUSOM warns that aggressive restrictions on foreign traders in Kenya could invite reciprocal measures against Kenyans operating across the region, putting at risk livelihoods and years of progress toward East African economic integration,” Nguli added during a meeting with journalists in Nairobi.
The danger, the organisations argue, is that Kenya could end up creating a larger clandestine economy that is harder to police while simultaneously weakening the regional integration framework that has enabled Kenyan businesses to expand across East Africa.
“NAHUSOM is therefore calling on the Government to suspend enforcement of the directive and undertake structured consultations, a comprehensive rights and security impact assessment and develop clear guidelines before implementation,” said Sister Mercy Mwai the Executive Director, Talitha Kum Kenya, an international network of religious sisters dedicated to combating human trafficking, protecting vulnerable individuals, and supporting survivors globally and across the country.
On September 3, President Ruto directed that foreign nationals operating small-scale businesses — including hawking, street vending, salons and small retail outlets — to close their operations and use a 90-day window to regularise their status.
The President has also said legislation will be fast-tracked to reserve certain categories of trade for Kenyans.
However, reacting to this directive, NAHUSOM cautioned that whereas Kenya has a legitimate interest in protecting local traders from unfair competition the abrupt shutting down of foreign-operated businesses could carry consequences far beyond the informal economy.
“Whereas NAHUSOM is not disputing the state’s authority to regulate business activity within its borders, protecting Kenyan traders as well should not come at the expense of dismantling the regional economic integration that has taken decades to build,” said Nimo Ali, the Executive Director, Candle of Hope Foundation.
She argued that Kenya’s position as a major commercial hub in the East African Community (EAC) depends heavily on the movement of people, goods, services and capital across borders.
A restrictive approach therefore, could invite reciprocal measures against Kenyan traders and small businesses operating in neighbouring EAC countries, threatening livelihoods on both sides of the region’s borders, she noted.
Kenya hosts close to 857,000 registered refugees and asylum seekers, many of whom depend on informal economic activities for survival. NAHUSOM says the loss of legitimate livelihoods could increase vulnerabilities to debt bondage, forced labour and trafficking for forced criminality.
The crackdown could also create tensions within communities where foreign nationals have lived, worked and established families with Kenyan citizens for years, the Coalition said.
NAHUSOM warned against allowing individuals, local groups or business competitors to conduct informal “vetting” of suspected foreigners, saying such actions could lead to false accusations, harassment, extortion and violence.
Gloria Mwangi, the Legal Officer, Refugees Consortium of Kenya stated that enforcement must remain the responsibility of authorised state agencies, and must comply with constitutional safeguards, particularly Articles 10 and 47, which require public authorities to uphold constitutional values and ensure administrative action is lawful, reasonable and procedurally fair.
“Such unauthorized vetting could also be exploited by business competitors to target, intimidate or eliminate legitimate rivals under the guise of enforcement.
“It would further escalates the very vulnerabilities that traffickers, smugglers and organized criminal networks exploit,” she said.
Mwangi further noted that Kenya’s obligation under the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially women and children, the Refugees Act and the East African Community Protocol on Free Movement of Persons, place a responsibility on the state to ensure that enforcement of any economic directive does not expose migrants to arbitrary detention, extortion, harassment or trafficking risk.
“As a champion country of the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration, Kenya is also committed to advancing fair, rights-based labour mobility and to reducing the vulnerability forced by migrants. These commitments, together with the country’s evolving National Migration Governance Policy, should inform how the current directive is designed and implemented,” she said.
Kenya signed the African Union Protocol on Free Movement of Persons in 2018, although it has yet to ratify it. While the protocol is therefore not fully binding on Kenya, NAHUSOM says the country’s approach to foreign traders should remain consistent with the broader principles of regional integration.
Within the EAC, Kenya has been one of the region’s most important commercial and transport hubs, with Kenyan businesses and workers operating across neighbouring countries. The network warns that measures perceived as discriminatory could encourage other governments to impose similar restrictions on Kenyan nationals.
That could expose Kenyan traders to the same barriers Nairobi is seeking to impose on foreign traders.
“NAHUSOM is therefore calling on the Government to suspend enforcement of the directive and undertake consultations and a comprehensive rights-impact assessment before implementing the proposed restrictions,” added Chris Kimani, Center for Domestic Training and Development, (CDTD) Lead.
He called on the Government to establish clear enforcement guidelines, prevent unauthorised vetting of foreign nationals and ensure that refugees, asylum seekers and other lawfully resident migrants are not subjected to arbitrary detention, extortion or harassment.
