Five nurses attached to the Mount Kenya University (MKU) have secured jobs in Germany under the agreement between President William Ruto and the German government.
In a statement on April 1, MKU said the five nursing apprentices is the first cohort that will be sent to work in Germany.
“MKU congratulates the first Cohort of Five Nursing apprentices travelling to Germany on 2nd April 2024. The five pioneer students have set the stage for the University which aims at preparing and sending 5000 apprentices to Germany,” said the University.
MKU explained that Ruto and the Chancellor of Germany Olaf Scholz, agreed on an agenda to offer Kenyans 250,000 job opportunities in Germany during his visit to Kenya in May 2023.
In supporting the president’s initiative, MKU has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Koblenz University of Applied Sciences, Germany.
The two universities will develop strategies to actualize Ruto’s agenda of creating job opportunities.
“The beneficiaries of the project have received full sponsorship from German accredited partner hospitals with work permits, Visa, work contracts and air- tickets to commence their paid apprenticeship,” the statement read in part.
Ruto Nurses Jobs Promise
Speaking on February 19, Ruto reiterated the government’s plan to create foreign jobs for Kenyan graduates including 2,500 opportunities for local nurses abroad.
“We have negotiated for opportunities to export labour from Kenya. We advised the other day for 2,500 nurses. So far imagine we have only 500, and these are people who are going to earn over Ksh 200,000,” Ruto said.
Additionally, Ruto revealed that there was an ongoing negotiation with government of Germany to create job opportunities for Kenyans.
“We are almost concluding the agreement with the German government because they have asked us for 250,000 job opportunities. They want us to conclude the agreement before June,” he said.
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Labour CS Meeting with German Officials
Besides, Labour Cabinet Secretary (CS) Florence Bore held discussions on labour migration with a German delegation on February 13, 2024.
CS Bore said the two countries will implement a labour exchange programme to address the unemployment rates in Kenya and the shortage of workers in Germany.
“Our two countries have officially kicked off the process that is meant to address the issue of shortage of skills in the German labour market as well as the surplus of skilled and non-skilled labour in Kenya,” she said.
Also Read: Ruto Moves to Secure Job Opportunities for Kenyans in Germany
Bore revealed that the German government had implemented new rules to allow for easy immigration of foreign workers.
“This initial critical step is commitment to the process of actualizing a labour mobility agreement between our two countries,” Bore said.
Diaspora Principal Secretary Roseline Njogu also chaired a meeting between representatives from the African Association of German Business and recruiters from both Kenya and Germany on the same day.
