Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing'oei said Kenya will now interact with Saudi authorities as it searches for an amicable solution of the 40-year-old woman's case.
Muthoni, who was working as a domestic worker in Saudi Arabia, has been in the country, hoping to be reunited with her one-year-old son.
Her struggles got worse when she became pregnant in a relationship with an Egyptian man who left Saudi Arabia.She delivered her child in August 2025 while residing in staff housing.
The news reported that a supervisor found the son and alerted authorities.Muthoni was later taken into custody and questioned about the pregnancy.
The woman, it is understood, had great difficulty acquiring accommodation once she was kicked out of staff quarters.
She, for a period, was sleeping at a petrol station where migrant mothers congregate while waiting to be helped to return to their countries.
Her recruiting agency later arranged housing for her.The Kenyan Embassy further provided travel documentation for Muthoni and her child to enable them to plan a return to the UK.
But she was unable to leave the country, as her case was still pending.In the end, the case was presided over by three judges in Riyadh.
Muthoni had an interpreter for the duration of her case but did not have legal representation.The court found her guilty of extramarital sex and ordered her to be flogged 100 times and exiled for a year.
It is also uncertain whether she will serve her sentence and, if her exile will be enforced, whether she will be deported back to her native Kenya.
Muthoni is said not to have appealed the ruling, claiming she will first seek a means to fly back to her children.
However, this case has now garnered the attention of the Kenyan government."Kenya will cooperate with the Saudi authorities to unlock the convoluted legal situation," he said.
The incident also triggered fresh debate on the plight of Kenyan women working in the Gulf, especially those who find themselves stranded after giving birth to children outside wedlock.
Though Saudi Arabia unveiled updates on flogging in 2020, some crimes designated under Islamic law still carry a risk of being flogged.
This case had consequently attracted more attention internationally than just in Kenya because of the issues raised about the punishment and the treatment of migrant workers.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry has previously addressed cases of undocumented Kenyan children born in Saudi Arabia."The ministry acquired DNA samples and co-operated with Saudi authorities to return the Kenyan mothers and the children they have," the ministry said.
But for Muthoni, the bigger questions are whether she will be able to go back home with her son and what will happen to the sentence meted out by the Saudi court.
Kenya is now likely to hold further talks with Saudi officials on how to proceed with the stuck mum.
https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/national/article/2001562059/kenya-to-engage-saudi-arabia-over-woman-sentenced-to-100-lashes
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