Photo of a cargoed body at JKIA, used for illustration purposes only.
Over the years, dozens of Kenyan domestic workers have lost their lives or returned home with trauma after working in Middle Eastern countries.
Reports from labour agencies and human rights groups continue to highlight cases of abuse, overwork, denial of medical care, and unsafe working conditions.
While many Kenyans travel abroad in search of better opportunities, tragic stories of exploitation and mysterious deaths have cast a dark shadow over the migrant labour experience.
Writer Dorah Achieng has now shared her own painful experience in Jordan, revealing how she narrowly survived a situation that nearly cost her life.
In a social media post, Achieng recalled arriving in Jordan ten years ago with hope, only to face harsh realities within three months.
She desperately sought ways to return home, including requesting a house transfer through her agent, attempting suicide using 29 tablets, and escaping at night to a police station hoping for deportation.
Instead, she was returned to the same household.
She also reached out to a stranger on Facebook seeking help to reach the Kenyan embassy, only to discover he was a family friend.
By the third month, she said she surrendered to fate and decided to finish her contract.
“These three months felt like three years,” she wrote.
Her situation worsened after her employer’s family broke apart following a divorce. She was forced to work in three locations — the main home, the daughter’s residence, and the employer’s company — leaving her with little time to rest.
Achieng fell severely ill but said her employer ignored her condition and insisted she continue working.
Her health deteriorated due to exposure to chemicals at the company, where she worked without protective gear.
Rescue came unexpectedly when the employer’s daughters intervened.
They secretly removed her from the home at night and took her to the father’s second wife’s residence, where she stayed for over a week recovering.
She believes their intervention saved her life.
“To date, I believe if not for them, I wouldn’t have survived,” she wrote.
Achieng says stories of Kenyans who die abroad deeply affect her because she nearly became one of the statistics.
She plans to share more details in her upcoming memoir, hoping her story will shed light on the realities many migrant workers endure.