Representatives of Kenyans in the diaspora on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, appealed to former premier Raila Odinga for representation in the National Assembly.

In a statement, Raila noted that the delegation also requested improved access to registration and voting for Kenyans living and working abroad.

“I met representatives of the Kenyan diaspora who made a presentation to me on increasing access to registration and voting for Kenyans living outside the country. They also made an appeal for my support for representation at the National Assembly,” Raila said.

Diaspora voter registration

According to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) report of 2022, the number of diaspora voters increased by more than 100 per cent in the 2022 General Election in comparison to the 2017 election.

In their report, IEBC indicated that 4,223 had registered as voters in 2017 while in 2022, the number of Kenyans in the diaspora who registered as voters were 10,444.

While this represented a paltry, 0.05 per cent of all the registered voters in the IEBC roll, it affirmed the increasing interest of Kenyans to take part in the democratic exercises back home.

Some of the ways the IEBC uses to access and register Kenyans in the diaspora as voters include reaching out to the Kenyan embassies, high commissions and consulates to initiate registration drives.

The report showed that the USA had 744 Kenyans registered as voters, Canada had 366, South Africa had 958, United Kingdom-798, Burundi-201, Rwanda- 1,090, Tanzania-410, Qatar-1,457, Uganda-1,411, South Sudan – 977, Germany-314 and the UAE-745.

Significant exchange earner

Diaspora remittances are the largest foreign exchange earner in Kenya after overtaking the traditional tea, coffee and horticulture which had dominated for years.

Through monitoring of the local banks and financial institutions controlled by the Central Bank of Kenya, the government determined that the money sent back home from Kenyans living in the diaspora increased by Ksh2.4 billion between September and October alone to hit Ksh56.7 billion.

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) in its weekly bulletin published on Friday, November 15, announced that the cumulative inflows for the 12 months to October 2024 increased by 15.3 per cent.

“The remittance inflows continue to support the current account and the foreign exchange market. The US remains the largest source of remittances to Kenya, accounting for 53.7 per cent in October 2024,” CBK observed.