Kenyan Family Seeks Answers for Daughter Missing in Saudi Arabia

A family in Kisii County, Kenya, is grappling with immense worry after losing contact with their daughter Felistus Nyambeki for over two years.

Nyambeki, a mother of three, departed for Saudi Arabia on December 14, 2021, hoping to secure a better life for herself and her loved ones. The initial communication was promising. Nyambeki briefly reached out to her family a week after her arrival, confirming her safe entry into the Gulf nation. However, subsequent attempts to connect proved fruitless. Alarmed by the silence, the family contacted the employment agency that facilitated Nyambeki’s trip to Saudi Arabia.

According to reports, Nyambeki travelled on a tourist visa which expires after three months. The family expressed deep disappointment with the agency’s lack of cooperation and evasive responses throughout their search for Nyambeki. In a desperate effort to locate their missing relative, the family, accompanied by Nyambeki’s children, visited the agency’s office on November 28, 2022. They demanded answers and were finally provided a contact number supposedly linked to Nyambeki.

The long-awaited conversation brought a surge of relief quickly followed by despair. Nyambeki’s voice, heavy with distress, recounted a harrowing ordeal. She pleaded for help, revealing a situation of abuse and violence. “Upon recognizing my voice,” shared Nyambeki’s uncle Fredrick Morema, “she became overwhelmed and begged for assistance to escape Saudi Arabia. She spoke of physical attacks and threats of violence if she dared to speak out.”

This agonizing conversation served as the family’s last contact with Nyambeki. Since then, all attempts to reach her have been met with silence. Their search for answers and desperate pleas for help have yielded no tangible results. This heartbreaking story is not an isolated incident. Another Kenyan family is facing a similar struggle. Gladys Wanjiku Ng’ang’a ventured to Saudi Arabia in 2019, seeking better employment prospects. However, communication ceased shortly after her arrival.

Gladys’s mother Zipporah Wanjiru Ng’ang’a clings to the memory of their last conversation. Gladys spoke of an illness but was unable to seek medical attention due to her employer’s fear of COVID-19 transmission. Zipporah pieced together fragments of information with the support of well-wishers and Kenyan residents in the Gulf nation. Gladys relocated to Saudi Arabia with the hope of improving the life of his son in form two. According to Ng’ang’a, she is currently undergoing treatment but is unable to speak.