Baringo County

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Baringo County
County
Flag of Baringo County.png
Flag
Coat of Arms of Baringo County.png
Coat of arms
Baringo County in Kenya.svg
Location in Kenya
CountryFlag of Kenya.svg  Kenya
Formed4 March 2013
Capital Kabarnet
Government
 •  Governor Benjamin Cheboi
Area
 • Total11,075.3 km2 (4,276.2 sq mi)
Population
 (2019 census)
 • Total666,763
 • Density60/km2 (160/sq mi)
Time zone UTC+3 (EAT)
Website

Baringo County is one of the 47 counties in Kenya. It is located in the former Rift Valley Province. Its headquarters and largest town is Kabarnet. The county is home to Lake Baringo, Lake Bogoria and Lake Kamnarok.

Contents

Geographical location

Baringo is bordered by Turkana County and West Pokot County to the North, Samburu County and Laikipia County to the East, Nakuru County and Kericho County to the South, Uasin Gishu County to the South West and Elgeyo Marakwet County to the West. It covers an area of 8,655 km2. Baringo County lies between Latitudes 00 degrees 13" South and 1 degree 40" north and Longitudes 35 degrees 36" and 36" degrees 30" East. [1]

Administrative and political units

Baringo has seven administrative sub-counties

  1. Baringo Central
  2. Tiaty East
  3. Tiaty West
  4. Eldama Ravine
  5. Baringo South
  6. Mogotio
  7. Baringo North

Administrative and electoral units in Baringo County

Baringo county has a total of thirty electoral wards and one hundred and sixteen locations. [2] The electoral wards is run by an elected member of county assembly where-areas location is led by Chief appointed.

ConstituencyArea KM sqElectoral WardsLocations
Baringo South1,678417
Mogotio1,315324
Eldama Ravine1,003616
Baringo Central800521
Baringo North1,704514
Tiaty4,517724
Total11,01530116

Source [3] [4] [5]

Demographics

The county has a population of 666,763 (2019 census) and an area of 10,976.4 km2 (4,238.0 sq mi). [6]

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1979 203,792—    
1989 347,990+70.8%
1999 403,141+15.8%
2009 555,561+37.8%
2019 666,763+20.0%
source: [7]

Distribution of population by sex and sub-county

SubcountyMaleFemaleIntersexTotal
1Baringo Central48,12048,829296,951
2Baringo North52,36952,5002104,871
3East Pokot40,46239,459279,923
4Eldama Ravine65,29564,2382129,535
5Baringo South45,70645,246390,955
6Mogotio47,01445,088291,104
7Tiaty East38,35635,068-73,424
TOTAL336,322330,42813666,673

Source [8] [3]

Religion

Religion in Baringo County [9]

Religion (2019 Census)Number
Catholicism 122,620
Protestant 291,992
Evangelical Churches 111,615
African instituted Churches 40,269
Orthodox 976
Other Christian 28,449
Islam 5,241
Hindu 90
Traditionists23,589
Other12,275
No ReligionAtheists 23,697
Don't Know1,914
Not Stated33

Religion and ethnicities

Red Cross team at work in East Pokot Rainbow in East Pokot 01.jpg
Red Cross team at work in East Pokot

The county is largely occupied by the Tugen, Lembus, Ndorois and Pokot people, which are Sub-Tribes of the Kalenjin people. The Tugen people include the Samor, Chapchap, and the Sachek of Sacho. Other communities residing in Baringo County include the Ilchamus, Turkana, Kikuyu, Numbians, and others. Christianity is the most practiced religion in the county. Traditionally, Baringo people believed in a Supreme Being known as Asis , who is represented by the sun; however, currently, most individuals in the county believe in Christianity. [10] The well-known Christian denominations within Baringo County include the African Inland Church (AIC), Anglican Church of Kenya(ACK), FGCK and Roman Catholic. [10]

County government

The current county governor is Benjamin Chesire Cheboi, [11] the deputy governor is Eng. Felix Kipngo'k who is the eldest son of the former deputy governor Charles Kipng'ok [12] who collapsed and died on 14 September 2022, at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport while boarding a plane to Mombasa; barely a month after taking oath of office. The current Senator is William Kipkorir Cheptumo [13] after overwhelmingly defeating the former senator Gideon Moi [14] on the 9 August polls. The current County Women Representative is Flowrence Jematiah Sergon. [15] The County Executive Committee [16] consists of the following:

CEC MemberDocket
Mrs. Scola Jepkesei KimeliDevolution, Public Service Management and Administration, e-government and ICT
Mr. Richard K RotichHealth Services & Ag. CEC Land, Housing and Urban Development
Ms. Mary Chebet PangaEnvironment, Natural Resources, Tourism and Wildlife Management
Dr. Maureen Jemutai RotichWater and Irrigation & Ag. CEC Agriculture, Livestock Development and Fisheries
Mr. Elijah Kiprop KipkorosEnvironment and Natural Resources
Mr. Enock KestonTransport, Public Works and Infrastructure & Ag. County Secretary
Mr. David Sergon ChesireEducation, Sports, Youth, Gender Affairs,Culture and Social Services & Ag. CEC Industry , Commerce, Enterprise and Co-orperative Development

Other CEC Positions shall be updated by Ruzeki [17] once they are filled.

Economics

The economy of the county is mainly agro-based. The main food crops grown are maize, pigeon peas, beans, Irish potatoes, sweet potatoes, sorghum, cassava and finger millet while the cash crops are coffee, cotton, macadamia and pyrethrum. [18] Livestock products include honey, beef, mutton as well as hides and skins. However, little value addition is done to these products.

Urbanization

Major urban centres in the county are Kabarnet, Eldama Ravine, Marigat, Mogotio, Kabartonjo, Chemolingot and Tangulbei.

Tourism and wildlife

Major attractions include: [19]

Major tourist hotels in the county are:

Education

Kabarnet town hosts a number of university campuses including those of Baringo University, Mount Kenya University, Egerton University, and Kisii University.

Secondary schools include Kabarnet High School,solian girls, Baringo High School, Kapropita High School, and Kituro High School, Tabagon Girls, Pemwai Girls, Tenges Boys among others

There are six hundred and eighty seven primary schools, out of this 601 are public and 86 are private schools. [2] In Secondary school category they are a total of one hundred and fifty nine (159) schools; one hundred and forty seven being public secondary schools and twelve being private public secondary schools. [20]

Health

Kabarnet County Referral Hospital is the largest and best public hospital in the county. There are a total of 172 health facilities; seven level four, 25 level three and 140 level 2 centres. [21]

Transport and infrastructure

The county headquarters is linked to Nakuru and Eldoret by class C roads which fall under the Kenya National Highways Authority (KENHA).

In January 2016, Fly-SAX began twice-weekly flights between Lake Baringo Airport and Nairobi–Wilson, becoming the first airline to serve the airport. [22] [2]

There are 339 kms of bitumen, 2141km of murram and 995 km of earth roads in the county. [23] [24] As of 2014 a total of 9 postal offices were spread across the county with letter boxes of 2950 installed. 2510 of them were rented and 440 remained vacant. [25]

Constituencies

The county has six constituencies: Baringo Central, Baringo South, Baringo North, Eldama Ravine, Mogotio, and Tiaty.

Villages and settlements

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Baringo</span> Freshwater lake in Kenya

Lake Baringo is, after Lake Turkana, the most northern of the Kenyan Rift Valley lakes, with a surface area of 130 square kilometres (50 sq mi) and an elevation of 970 metres (3,180 ft). The lake is fed by several rivers: the Molo, Perkerra and Ol Arabel. It has no obvious outlet; the waters are assumed to seep through lake sediments into the faulted volcanic bedrock. It is one of the two freshwater lakes in the Rift Valley in Kenya, the other being Lake Naivasha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Bogoria</span> Meromictic lake in Kenya

Lake Bogoria is a saline, alkaline lake that lies in a volcanic region in a half-graben basin south of Lake Baringo, Kenya, a little north of the equator. Lake Bogoria, like Lake Nakuru, Lake Elementeita, and Lake Magadi further south in the Rift Valley, and Lake Logipi to the north, is periodically home to one of the world's largest populations of lesser flamingos. The lake is a Ramsar site and Lake Bogoria National Reserve has been a protected National Reserve since November 29, 1973.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tugen people</span> Tribe of Kenya

The Tugen are a sub tribe of the Kenyan Kalenjin people. They fall under the highland nilotes category. They occupy Baringo County and some parts of Nakuru County and Elgeyo Marakwet County in the former Rift Valley Province. Daniel Arap Moi, the second president of Kenya (1978–2002), came from this sub-tribe. The Tugen people speak the Tugen language. The Tugen population was 197,556 as of 2019.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tugen Hills</span>

The Tugen Hills are a series of hills in Baringo County, Kenya. They are located in the central-western portion of Kenya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laikipia County</span> County in Kenya

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Kabarnet is a town in Baringo County, Kenya. As of the 2019 census,the town had a population of 22,474 with 10,943 (48.8%) of them being males and 11,531(51.1%) of them being females.

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Local authorities in Kenya are the bodies controlling local governance in urban areas in Kenya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homa Bay County</span> County in Kenya

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Pokot County</span> County in Kenya

West Pokot County is a county in Kenya. Its capital and largest town is Kapenguria. The county covers an area of approximately 9,169.4 square kilometers and stretches a distance of 132 kilometers from north to south.

Sacho is a township in Baringo County, Kenya. It is located along Kabarnet - Eldama Ravine road 24 kilometres south of Kabarnet and 6 kilometres north of Tenges.

Marigat is a small town in Baringo County, Kenya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sub-Counties of Kenya</span>

Sub-counties, also known as Districts, are the decentralised units through which government of Kenya provides functions and services. At national level, sub-counties take a more administrative function like security, statistical purposes, provision of government services, etc. Even though the sub-counties are divisions of counties, powers to create new national sub-counties lies with the national government. As of 2023, there are 314 sub-counties, compared to 290 constituencies. A deputy county commissioner is appointed by the state to lead each sub-county. The sub-counties are further divided into divisions, locations and sub-locations.

Baringo District was an administrative district in the Rift Valley Province of Kenya. Its capital town was Kabarnet. The district had a population of 264,978 and an area of 8,646 km2 (3,338 sq mi). The district was created by the colonial government. In 2013, the district ceased to exist and Baringo County was formally established.

Benjamin Chesire Cheboi, EBS, is a Kenyan politician who was the first and current Governor of Baringo County. He belongs to the UDA party.

Grace Kobilo Kiptui is a Kenyan politician who served as the woman representative of Baringo County from 2013 until 2017. A member of the United Republican Party, she was elected in the 2013 elections. She is sometimes called "Mama County".

Maji Mazuri is a small town in Kenya's Baringo County along the Makutano-Ravine-Kampi Ya Moto (C55) highway. This is the most southerly tip of the greater Baringo area. It neighbors Kericho's Londiani and Nakuru's Kamara areas. The settlement was formed by migrants who used to work in the Koibatek Forest, but were either retrenched or retired at one time. As such, Maji Mazuri is home to people from different ethnic groups of Kenya. The Agikuyu and Tugen people are the majority population in the larger Maji Mazuri location of Eldama Ravine division.

Reuben Kiborek is the current Member of Parliament for Mogotio Constituency of Baringo County located in Rift Valley, Kenya. He was elected to the seat the 2022 Kenyan general elections. Kiborek had previously contested Mogotio in the 2017 elections. He is a member of the United Democratic Alliance party. Prior to politics, he worked as a herdboy.

References

  1. ↑ "Baringo County Government - Home". www.baringo.go.ke. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (2015). County Statistical Abstract Baringo County. Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.
  3. 1 2 "Publications". Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  4. ↑ "Baringo County Government - Who We Are". www.baringo.go.ke. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  5. ↑ interior_admin. "Home". interior.go.ke. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  6. ↑ Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (2019). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census. Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.
  7. ↑ Kenya: Administrative Division population statistics
  8. ↑ Munene, Evans (4 November 2019). "2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Results". Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  9. ↑ "2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Volume IV: Distribution of Population by Socio-Economic Characteristics" (PDF). Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
  10. 1 2 "About Baringo County in Kenya". www.kenya-information-guide.com. Archived from the original on 3 December 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  11. ↑ "Baringo County Government - Governor Cheboi starts 5 day development tour of Tiaty".
  12. ↑ Baringo [ dead link ]
  13. ↑ "Sen. Kipkiror William Cheptumo | the Kenyan Parliament Website".
  14. ↑ "Sen. Moi Gideon Kipsielei | the Kenyan Parliament Website".
  15. ↑ "Sergon Jematiah Flowrence | East African Legislative Assembly".
  16. ↑ "Baringo". Archived from the original on 13 October 2022. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  17. ↑ Suspended Twitter account [ dead link ]
  18. ↑ "Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries". www.baringo.go.ke. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  19. ↑ "Industrialization, Commerce, Tourism & Enterprise Development". www.baringo.go.ke. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  20. ↑ "Home". www.education.go.ke. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  21. ↑ "Baringo County Government - Health Services". baringo.go.ke. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  22. ↑ "Fly SAX starts flights to Lake Baringo". African Aerospace. 14 December 2015. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  23. ↑ "Home". www.kerra.go.ke. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  24. ↑ "Baringo Region". www.kerra.go.ke. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  25. ↑ "Postal Corporation of Kenya". www.posta.co.ke. Retrieved 25 May 2020.

0°40′N36°00′E / 0.667°N 36.000°E / 0.667; 36.000

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