This archive report was first published on 10 January 2020.
On January 10, 2020, a multi-agency government team successfully rescued 10 Kenyan seafarers who had been abandoned in Mozambique.
According to Maj (Rtd) George Nyamoko Okong'o, Director General of the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA), the seafarers were left stranded after their employer abandoned them and their ship ran out of fuel, with no provisions or lighting onboard.
Okong'o stated that the KMA received a report of the abandonment and immediately initiated an investigation, guided by the International Labour Organization's Maritime Labour Convention, 2006.
The investigation revealed that the ship owner had not signed the seafarers' employment agreements, as required, and that the crew's passports had been confiscated by Mozambican authorities during a port state control inspection in October 2019.
With the assistance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the state department for Shipping and Maritime, the Kenyan crew's passports were released from immigration authorities in Pemba, allowing for their safe return.
The KMA has cautioned seafarers against accepting recruitment from unlicensed agents, as this can expose them to exploitation and infringement of their rights.
The Authority has urged seafarers to contact their Registrar's office for assistance in matters of employment agreements and other queries.
