Kenya hosting 40,000 Ethiopian refugees fleeing border conflicts

Speaking about the ongoing situation, Mudavadi said tensions in Ethiopia had forced thousands of people to flee into Kenya.

"The issue is that from the Ethiopian side, they have been having a little bit of tension over there. So, the problem has caused about 40,000 people to evacuate to Kenya," he said.

Mudavadi said he had communicated with his Ethiopian counterpart and asked him to intervene and help stabilise the situation so that the displaced families can return home.

"I told him to try and calm the situation in their country so that the refugees return to their homes," he said.

He added that the Ethiopian government had assured Kenya that it was working to restore normalcy.

"They have assured us that they will do their best to return the issues to normalcy and then the people can go back," Mudavadi said.

The displacement follows clashes that erupted in October 2026, amid longstanding disagreements between the Oromia and Somali regional administrations over territorial boundaries and administrative control.

The fighting has displaced thousands of people, with many families seeking shelter in schools, churches and temporary camps, while others have been accommodated by relatives and members of the local community.