SIZE & LOCATION

Kiambu County is one of the 47 counties in the Republic of Kenya. It is located in the central region and covers a total area of 2,543.5 Km2 with 476.3 Km2 under forest cover according to the 2009 Kenya Population and Housing Census.

ADMINISTRATIVE & POLITICAL UNITS

Currently, the County is divided into twelve (12) sub-counties namely Limuru, Kikuyu, Kabete Lari, Gatundu South, Gatundu North, Githunguri, Kiambu, Kiambaa, Ruiru, Juja and Thika Town. These are further divided into 60 wards.

Demographic Features

According to the 2009 Kenya Population and Housing Census, Kiambu County population for 2012 was projected to be 1,766,058 with 873,200 males and 892,857 females. Further, the population is expected to reach 2,032,464 people by the end of 2017. This is influenced by the county's high population growth rate, which is at 2.81 per cent and the influx of people working in the city who prefer to stay in Kiambu and its environs where there is less congestion and better infrastructure.

In terms of gender, the sex ration of male to female is appriximately 1:1.02

EDUCATION & LITERACY 

Pre-School Education

The county has a total population of 87,594 children falling within the age group of 3 to 5 (pre-school). This consists of 44,177 males and 43,417 females. The total number of ECD teachers is 1,843 and the teacher to pupil ratio is 1:40. However, most of the teachers are paid by parents and this is likely to compromise quality since not all are qualified to handle the young ones during the formative stages. We are optimistic that the court case filed by KNUT will soon be over so that we can bring qualified teachers on board. Total enrolment for ECD in the county is 73,730. Public ECD centres have an enrolment of 29,655 comprising of 15,563 males and 14,092 females. Private ECD centres have a total enrolment of 44,075 children comprising of 22,134 males and 21,941 females. There is therefore need for more investments in public ECD centres to ensure children from poor background get access to early education without much strain.

Primary Education

There are 1,225 primary schools in Kiambu County out of which 576 are public and 349 are private. The total number of primary school teachers is 21,090 and the teacher to pupil ratio is 1:38. The total enrolment rate stands at 295,409 pupils comprising of 115,375 males and 113,910 females. The gross enrolment rate stands at 109.6 percent, while the net enrolment rate is 99.7 percent. This could be attributed to the introduction of Free Primary Education programme. Infrastructure in schools has also improved through devolved funds e.g. Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and Local Authority Transfer Fund (LATF). However, the county still needs to invest in the provision of additional education facilities because of the increasing number of school going population.

Literacy

The percentage of people within the county who can read stands at 95.6 percent while 3.8 percent of the total population cannot read. Also, 95.2 percent of the total population can write while 4.2 percent cannot write. About 95.4 percent of the total population within the county can read and write while 4.6 percent cannot read and write. Those who can read and write stand at 95.4 per cent. The high literacy rates are as a result of continued investment in the education sector and there is need for more investment to ensure the literacy levels gets to 100 percent.

Secondary Education

There are 303 secondary schools consisting of 227 public and 76 private schools. The total enrolment rate is 89,065 out of which 44,777 are males and 44,288 are females. The gross enrolment rate is 69.3 percent and the net enrolment rate is 61.8 percent. The number of teachers in the county stands at 3,479 and the teacher/pupil ratio is 1:25. As indicated in the fact sheet, the completion rate is 92.5 percent and therefore there is need for great investment in the education sector to ensure the rate reaches 100 percent.

Tertiary Education

The County has one public University, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology located in Juja Constituency and two satellite campuses namely University of Nairobi, Kikuyu campus in Kikuyu sub county and Kenyatta University , Ruiru campus in Ruiru Sub County. There are six private universities which include Gretsa University, Mount Kenya University, St. Paul‘s University, Kiriri Women‘s Science and Technology University and Presbyterian University of East Africa, Zitech University in Ruiru and a number of tertiary colleges. The county also has two Teacher Training Colleges namely Kilimambogo Teachers in Thika Sub County and Thogoto Teachers in Kikuyu sub county. These institutions have gone a long way in ensuring secondary school graduates get access to higher education therefore ensuring the availability of necessary skills required in the job market.

TOURISM 

Main Tourist Attractions, National Parks/Reserves

The county does not have national parks or game reserves apart from tourist attraction sites which are unexploited. These sites include Kinare Forest in Lari Constituency, Chania Falls and Fourteen Falls in Juja Constituency, Paradise Lost and Mugumo Gardens in Kiambaa Constituency, Mau Mau Caves, Gatamaiyu Fish Camp and historical sites in Gatundu and Githunguri Constituencies.

Main Wildlife

Kiambu County has few wildlife resources since many gazetted forests were allocated illegally to individuals. An example is Kinare forest in Lari Constituency, whose ecosystem constitutes of a dense forest with elephants, hyenas, bush baby, baboons, colobus monkeys, dik-dik, bush pigs, tree and ground squirrels, porcupines and many species of birds such as weaver, guinea fowls, sparrow among others.

Tourist Class Hotels/Restaurants, Bed Occupancy

The county has 682 unclassified hotels and 694 bars and restaurants which are well distributed within the county. Availability of such facilities in this county is affected by its close proximity to Nairobi where tourist facilities of all classes exist in abundance.

CROPS & LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION

Main Crops Produced

Agriculture is the predominant economic activity in the county and contributes 17.4 per cent of the county‘s population income. It is the leading sub sector in terms of employment, food security, income earnings and overall contribution to the socio-economic well being of the people. Majority of the people in the county depend on the sub sector for their livelihood, with 304,449 directly or indirectly employed in the sector. Coffee and tea are the main cash crops in the county. The main food crops grown in the county are maize, beans, pineapples and irish potatoes. These are mainly grown in small scale in the upper highlands of Limuru, Kikuyu, Gatundu North and South Constituencies.

Main Livestock Bred

According to 2009 Population and Housing Census, the numbers of livestock in the county were as follows: 230,294 cattle, 120,056 Sheep, and 89,817 goats. In addition, there were 2,600,837 poultry, 46,493 pigs, 13,662 donkeys and 127 camels. In the year 2010, the county produced 267.5 million Kgs of milk valued at Kshs. 5.0 billion; and 36.2 million Kgs of beef valued at Kshs. 6.5 billion. Production of mutton was at 106,686 Kgs valued at Kshs. 42.7 million. Further, the county recorded production of 266.9 million Kgs of eggs, valued at Kshs. 699.2 million; poultry meat produced was 76.2 million Kgs, valued at Kshs. 142.9 million, honey produced was 134,332 Kgs valued at Kshs. 67.2 million and 1.8 million Kgs of pork valued at Kshs. 631.1 million. Growth in this sub-sector has been encouraged by a ready urban market in Thika, Ruiru, Kiambu and Nairobi and the availability of local food processing factories such as Farmers´ Choice Ltd, Kenchic Co. Ltd, Brookside Dairies, Githunguri Dairies, Ndumberi Dairies, Limuru Milk and Palmside Dairies, among others. There are no ranches within the county.

GOVERNOR

His Excellency Hon. Ferdinard Ndungu Waititu Babayao

Kiambu Governor acquired the name Babayao for his passion, energy and ability to work tirelessly especially for the less fortunate in society. He has a strong conviction for change towards empowering the youths. H.E Ferdinard Waititu holds a Bachelor of commerce degree and is currently pursuing an MBA (Human Resource Management). He has over 20 years of diverse experience in the public service.

He has worked as an accountant in the national treasury and was later elected as a councillor during which period he served as a deputy mayor of the City of Nairobi. He was voted in as a Member of Parliament for Embakasi Constituency which led to his appointment as an assistant minister for water. H.E Ferdinard Waititu has also served as the Member of National Assembly for Kabete constituency.

H.E Ferdinard Waititu is the leader of Team United for Kiambu which endeavours to ensure that Kiambu county resources are optimally utilized and equitably distributed. The team aims to ensure that participatory governance is practiced, land related issues addressed and agricultural systems improved. The team will build infrastructure and healthcare thus making Kiambu to a model County in the country where people will access all services and be empowered economically, socially and politically.

DEPUTY GOVERNOR

The Deputy Governor Hon. James K. Nyoro

 He is an Agricultural Economist from the University of Nairobi and London’s Wye College. He has worked as the Managing Director of the Rockefeller Foundation in charge of the African Region based in Nairobi, Kenya. Before joining the Rockefeller Foundation, He was the Executive Director of a Nairobi-based policy think tank, Tegemeo Institute, Egerton University. Hon. James Nyoro has also worked as the advisor to the Government of Kenya through the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries. James is an expert on food security both locally and internationally and is bringin in his vast experience to the Team United for Kiambu.

Team United for Kiambu which endeavours to ensure that Kiambu county resources are optimally utilized and equitably distributed. The team aims to ensure that participatory governance is practiced, land related issues addressed and agricultural systems improved. The team will build infrastructure and healthcare thus making Kiambu to a model County in the country where people will access all services and be empowered economically, socially and politically.

THE COUNTY ASSEMBLY

To learn more about the Kiambu County Assembly, click on the link below;

http://kiambucountyassembly.go.ke/#