This archive report was first published on 24 April 2020.
On April 24, 2020, Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Raychelle Omamo addressed concerns over the government's decision to demand Kenyans seeking to return home to do so at their own cost.
Speaking during an interview on Kenya Broadcasting Corporation, Omamo emphasized that it is not feasible for the government to cater for travel expenses of the 3 million Kenyans documented to be living abroad.
She stated, 'We want to meet those that are in distress within the limits of our resources and to try and find solutions that go beyond evacuations. We have to be reasonable, we have to think with our heads and not with our hearts. If we start evacuating people free of charge, others will start demanding the same thing.'
Omamo's comments came after the ministry's Principal Secretary Ambassador Macharia Kamau faced criticism for saying it is impractical to charter flights for Kenyans stranded in China and India.
Kenyan citizens took to social media to express their disappointment over the decision, urging the government to draw money from the COVID-19 Response Fund.
Omamo further assured Kenyans living in the Diaspora that the government had not abandoned them, stating, 'With regard to the Diaspora, I want to say as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we have your interest at heart. We are trying to do our very best to try and meet you at the point of your need.'
The Kenyan High Commission in New Delhi and the Kenyan Embassy in Beijing have announced plans to evacuate Kenyans seeking to return home, but at their own cost.
