Samasource Impact Sourcing Inc, the San Francisco-based data annotation firm operating as Sama, has issued redundancy notices to 1,108 employees at its Nairobi delivery centre following Meta's termination of a major contract, which has dealt a significant blow to Kenya's burgeoning business process outsourcing industry. The layoffs, formally announced on April 16, follow unsuccessful negotiations between Sama and Meta to preserve the workstream. Sama Country Lead and Vice President for Global Delivery, Annepeace Alwala, confirmed that the redundancies were issued in compliance with Section 40 of Kenya's Employment Act, 2007, with the necessary statutory notifications submitted to the relevant authorities. "As is standard in our industry, client programmes evolve, and we work closely with our partners to manage these transitions responsibly. Our immediate priority is supporting our employees through this change and ensuring continuity across our broader operations," Alwala said in a statement. The affected roles are overwhelmingly tied to the discontinued Meta engagement, which had anchored a substantial portion of Sama's Kenyan workforce in reviewing and labelling data used to train artificial intelligence models. Sama said it is providing affected employees with transition support, including full benefits, medical cover, and access to on-site counselling services. The retrenchment lands against a backdrop of prolonged legal scrutiny. Since 2022, Meta and Sama have faced litigation from former content moderators who alleged inadequate mental health support and low wages for work that involved exposure to graphic and disturbing material. A group of approximately 200 moderators terminated in 2023 is seeking $1.6 billion in compensation, with the case still ongoing before the Kenyan courts. Sama has previously defended its labour practices, stating it offers four times the local minimum wage and unlimited mental health resources. Meta has maintained that its contractors are obliged to provide industry-leading pay and practitioner-led worker support. The layoffs underscore the structural vulnerability of Kenya's BPO sector, where a limited number of U.S. technology clients account for a significant percentage of high-volume digital work. While Nairobi has positioned itself as a hub for AI training data services, the abrupt contract cancellation highlights how swiftly work can shift across jurisdictions as multinational clients recalibrate their strategy or automate processes.
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