Kiambu County

Kiambu County is one of the 47 counties of Kenya located in the Mount Kenya region of Kenya. Its capital is Kiambu and its largest town is Thika.^[2] Kiambu County is the second most populous county in Kenya after Nairobi County. Kiambu County borders Nairobi and Kajiado Counties to the South, Machakos to the East, Murang'a to the North and North East, Nyandarua to the North West, and Nakuru to the West. It has a population of 2,417,735.^[3][4]

The county is 40% rural and 60% urban owing to Nairobi's consistent growth Northwards. The Kikuyu are the dominant tribe in the county. Kiambu is also an economic and political powerhouse in Kenya due to its sprawling population and relatively urban and educated populace. The county features the second most universities only behind Nairobi.

The county has an average annual rainfall of 1,200 millimetres (47 in) and a mean temperature of 26 °C (79 °F) with temperatures as low as −7 °C (19 °F) in the upper highland areas of Limuru. The long rains start in mid-March to May, and the cold season from July to August.^[5]

According to the 2019 census, there is a total population of 2,417,735 in the county: 1,187,146 males, 1,230,454 females, and 135 intersex persons. There are 796,241 households with an average household size of 3.0 persons per household and a population density of 952 people/km².^[6]

In Kiambu County, there are 1,515 ECD centers, 948 primary schools, 365 secondary schools, 33 youth polytechnics, 165 adult education centers, one technical training institution, one technical institute of technology. There are a number of universities:^[13]Kenyatta University, St Paul's University, Presbyterian University of East Africa, Mama Ngina University College, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology^[14] and four private universities, Gretsa University,^[15]UMMA University,^[16]Mount Kenya University^[17] and Zetech University.

Kiambu County has a total of 505 health facilities: 108 are public, 64 faith-based, and 333 private. Kiambu County has 2,652 health personnel of different cadre with a doctor/population ratio of 1:6,667, while the nurse population ratio is at 1:1,110. The immunization coverage is at 89%, close to the national target of 90%.^[19]

According to 2016 estimates, HIV prevalence is at 5.6% (below the national 5.9%) and the county is ranked 6th in terms of HIV burden.^[20]

The county is covered by 2,049 kilometres (1,273 mi) of road networks. Of this, 459 kilometres (285 mi) is covered by earth surface, 1,075.8 kilometres (668.5 mi) is murram surface, and 515 kilometres (320 mi) is covered by bitumen.^[23]

There are 19 Post Offices.^[22]

There are 302 trading centers, 118 markets, 364 retail supermarkets, 5,813 registered businesses, 5,807 licensed retail traders and 5,740 licensed wholesale traders.^[22][24]

Tatu City is a special economic zone and an industrial park located in Ruiru sub-county. Apart from real estate, individuals and organizations have also invested in processing. Companies operating in Kiambu include: Farmers Choice Ltd, 25 Kenchic Co. Ltd, Brookside Dairies, Githunguri Dairies, Ndumberi Dairies, Limuru Milk and Palmside Dairies. Kiambu has the second largest economy in Kenya, largely due to its sprawling population and close proximity to the capital city. Kiambu also has the second most educated populace of any county in Kenya.

Thika sub-county which hosts Thika Town (also known as Birmingham of Kenya, due to the many industries) has 58 industries, including Bidco Oil Industries, Devki Steel Mills, Broadway Bakeries and Kenblest, among others.^[25]

Around 16% of Kiambu County, 40,000 hectares, is covered by forest. The trees are used for wood fuel as there is a high demand for both charcoal and firewood. Tree planting projects are in progress as the trees face increasing temperatures due to climate change.^[26]

In 2021 a leading activist, Joannah Stutchbury was assassinated after protesting about developments in the forest.^[27]

The county has twelve constituencies and fourteen sub-counties.^[28][29] Of the twelve constituencies, Lari occupies the largest land mass at 439.2 km² (169.6 sq mi), while Kabete is the smallest by landmass as it occupies 60.3 km² (23.3 sq mi).

تقع أجزاء من المناطق الجنوبية لمقاطعة كيامبو ضمن منطقة نيروبي الكبرى، التي تضم أربع مقاطعات من أصل 47 مقاطعة في كينيا. ^{[ 35 ] [ 36 ]}

• المكتب الوطني للإحصاء في كينيا
• مجلس المحافظين
• كيامبو

• جيتومبو
• كابيتي
• كيجابي
• كيراتينا
• ويلفريد كيبورو
• مقاطعة ناكورو
• مقاطعة ميرو
• مقاطعة نيروبي
• مقاطعة كاجيادو
• مقاطعة ماكوس
• مقاطعة مورنغا
• مقاطعة نيانداروا