Posted by Chinenye on Tue 08th Sep, 2026 - tori.ng
Kenya has moved to ease growing tension among foreign workers after a controversial directive sparked fear and confusion across the country.
(Kenya President, William Ruto. Photo by Punch News)
Kenya is giving foreign workers 90 days to sort out their work permits.
This is a big shift from President William Ruto's order last week that scared a lot of people.
Ruto had said foreigners couldn't run small shops or sell stuff on the streets anymore.
He gave everyone until Monday to stop working.
Most people thought he was just trying to get votes from local shop owners before the election next year.
But it scared people bad. Burundian street sellers in Nairobi got really worried, and some of them were even attacked.
So many Burundians went to their embassy that Monday just trying to get help and figure out how to go back home.
The government is now trying to calm everyone down.
They said they're not trying to kick anyone out.
They just want all businesses to do things the right way.
People from other countries in East Africa, like Burundi, can actually work legally without paying for permits.
But a lot of them never bothered to register officially.
The deputy foreign minister apologized to the Burundians who got attacked.
He said people were confused about what the order meant, and that's why things got violent.
Now Kenya is giving 90 days for foreign workers to register properly and get their papers in order before the government starts cracking down.