Karatina

Last updated

Karatina is a town in Nyeri County, Kenya which hosts a municipal council and serves as the headquarters of Mathira East district. Karatina municipality has a total population of 6,852, all classified as urban (1999 census [1] ). It has six electoral wards, all in the Mathira Constituency; the remaining five wards of Mathira constituency represent Nyeri County Council. [2]

Contents

Geography

Karatina is on the Nairobi – Nyeri highway, 25 kilometres southeast of Nyeri town and south of Mount Kenya. It is at an elevation of 1,868 metres (6,129 ft).

History

Karatina was a popular open air market before the colonial period. Barter trade took place under a muratina tree, hence the name Karatina. During World War II a dried vegetable factory was built in Karatina, providing the people with dried fruits. [3] Other people think the town's name came from the English name 'quarantine' that locals pronounced as 'karantina'.

Health

There are two major hospitals in Karatina, the government-funded Karatina General Hospital and the private Jamii Hospital. In addition, PCEA TumuTumu Hospital is a few miles west of Karatina.

Economy

Karatina town hosts the largest open air market in Kenya and the People living in Karatina are known to be very active with most economic operations beginning at 4am and ending at 10pm. More than 90% are Kikuyus which form the largest tribe in Kenya. There are many auxiliary services and the town is rich in agricultural products are well. There is an ideal mix of urban and rural life. The town also hosts major banks and saccos showing the economic undertone of the town. The banks include Absa, Equity Bank, NCBA, Family Bank, DTB, KWFT, National Bank, and many more.

In 2017 one of the Uchumi Supermarkets branch got shut down in Karatina. [4]

In 2018, Maguna brand of supermarkets opened 2 Supermarkets within the town. The town also plays host to another supermarket; Maathai Supermarket. There is huge potential for agricultural based industries which is yet to be exploited.

With the resumption of railway transport and the completion of Kenol-Marua super highway many investors are lining up to relocate to Karatina.[ citation needed ]

Schools and universities

Related Research Articles

Limuru is a town in central Kenya. It is also the name of a parliamentary constituency and an administrative division. The population of the town, as of 2004, was about 4,800. In a census taken in 2019 the population had increased to 159,314.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dedan Kimathi</span> Kenyan leader during the Mau Mau Uprising (1920–1957)

Dedan Kimathi Waciuri was the senior military and spiritual leader of the Kikuyu rebels involved in the Mau Mau Uprising. Widely regarded as a revolutionary leader, he led the armed military struggle against the British colonial regime in Kenya in the 1950s until his capture in 1956 and execution in 1957. Kimathi is credited with leading efforts to create formal military structures within the Mau Mau, and convening a war council in 1953. He, along with Baimungi M'marete, Musa Mwariama, General China and Muthoni Kirima, was one of the Field Marshals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nyeri</span> City in Nyeri County, Kenya

Nyeri is a town situated in the Central Highlands of Kenya. It is the county headquarters of Nyeri County. The town was the central administrative headquarters of the country's former Central Province. Following the dissolution of the former provinces by Kenya's new constitution on 26 August 2010, the city is situated about 150 km north of Kenya's capital Nairobi, in the country's densely populated and fertile Central Highlands, lying between the eastern base of the Aberdare (Nyandarua) Range, which forms part of the eastern end of the Great Rift Valley, and the western slopes of Mount Kenya.

Othaya is a Kenyan town about 120 kilometres north of Nairobi, the capital. It has a population of 21,427, of which 4,108 are core urban ; the majority of the residents are of the Kikuyu tribe. Othaya is part of the Nyeri County. It has been a traditionally agricultural area with coffee and tea as the main cash crops, with many residents being subsistence farmers. Othaya is home to Chinga dam, the largest water reservoir in Nyeri County.

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

Nyahururu is a town in Kenya, lying north east of Nakuru. The town derives its name from the Maasai word e-naiwurruwurr, meaning waterfall and/or windy or place of storms. It is allegedly located in Laikipia County. Despite this, Nyahururu formerly functioned as the administrative capital of Nyandarua District, before it became a county, until the headquarters was shifted to Ol Kalou. There have been calls for a reversal. The town has an urban population of 36,450. The town still continues to be a central economic power of the immediate former district of Nyandarua. For that reason, the town has strong economic ties to the two counties.

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

Laikipia County is one of the 47 Counties of Kenya, located on the Equator in the former Rift Valley Province of the Country. Laikipia is a cosmopolitan County and is Listed as County number 31. The county has two major urban centres: Nanyuki to the southeast, and Nyahururu to the southwest. Its County government headquarters town is Rumuruti. The County lies between latitudes 0° 18" South and 0° 51" North and between longitudes 36° 11" and 37° 24' East. It borders Samburu County to the North, Isiolo County to the North East, Meru County to the East, Nyeri County to the South East, Nyandarua County to the South, Nakuru County to the South West and Baringo County to the West.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murang'a</span> Town in Muranga County, Kenya

Murang'a is a town in Murang'a County of Kenya. Before the independence of Kenya in 1963, this town used to be called Fort Hall. It is the administrative centre of Murang'a County and is mainly inhabited by the Kikuyu community. According to the 2019 census, the town has a population of about 110,000.

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

Nyeri County is a county located in the central region of Kenya. Its capital and largest town is Nyeri. It has a population of 759,164 and an area of 2361 km2. Mutahi Kahiga was governor as of 2022. Previous governors include Nderitu Gachagua, who died while receiving treatment in London, Wamathai Samuel Githaiga, and Wahome Gakuru, who died in a road accident at Kabati near Kenol heading towards Thika Super Highway. It is also the home county of the third president of Kenya, the late President Mwai Kibaki.

Mûkûrwe'inî was a former district in Nyeri County, Kenya.

Coffee production is a significant contributor to the economy of Kenya. The industry is noted for its cooperative system of production, processing, milling, marketing, and auction system. About 70% of Kenyan coffee is produced in small farms that control about 75% of the land under production. It was estimated in 2012 that there were about 150,000 coffee farmers in Kenya. Other sources suggest that 6 million Kenyans are employed directly or indirectly in the coffee industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gatundu</span> Township in Kiambu County, Kenya

Gatundu is a small town in Kiambu County of Kenya. It is known for the first Kenyan president Jomo Kenyatta who lived about three kilometres away from the town, as well as his son, Uhuru Kenyatta, now the 4th President of Kenya and former Member of Parliament representing Gatundu South Constituency. The town is located on a hill surrounded by many farms and residences.

Kerugoya is the biggest town in Kirinyaga County, located 10 kilometres east of Karatina and 40 kilometres west of Embu. It is situated in the former Kirinyaga district. Travel directions by road from Nairobi is through Thika Road past Thika, Kenol and Makuyu. The road leads through Makutano until Sagana town, where a road branches off the East towards Kagio town up to Kirinyaga University branching North towards the town.

Mathira Constituency is an electoral constituency in Kenya. It is one of six constituencies in Nyeri County. The constituency was established for the 1963 elections. Mathira is popularly known as Mathira ya Githomo (education). It has the most educated population in the country. It sits at the foot of Mount Kenya. Mathira is known for growing tea and coffee. Karatina is to the east. Several tarmac roads crisscross Mathira, including the Kenol-Marua superhighway.

Gaikuyu Sub-location is a settlement in Kenya's Central Province, Nyeri County, Mathira Constituency.

Ihwagi is a settlement in Kenya's Central Province. Currently, it is a shopping center as well as one of the sub locations in Kairia Location of Kirimara Division, Mathira East District, Mathira Constituency, Nyeri County. It is on the Karatina town- Karatina University, approximately 5 kilometers from Karatina Town (CBD) and roughly 130 kilometers from Nairobi city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kamulu</span> Neighbourhood in Nairobi

Kamulu is a neighbourhood in Nairobi City County located to the North East of the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD). It borders Joska (Matungulu) in Machakos County to the east, Mwalimu Farm Ruiru to the north, Njiru to the west, and Mihang'o to the south west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kibirigwi</span> Place in Central Province, Kenya

Kibirigwi is a settlement in Kenya's Kirinyaga County of the former Central Province. The township is located along the Nairobi, Nyeri highway within Ndia Constituency. Ragati River also passes within parts of the Kibirigwi area. Kibirigwi neighbors Kibingoti and Karatina towns, the former being in Kirinyaga and the latter being in Nyeri County.

Kanjuri High School is a secondary school located at Kanjuri area, Gatei Sublocation in Karatina, Mathira Constituency, Nyeri County in Kenya. The School is currently a boy's high school offering Kenya Secondary Education for Form 1, 2, 3, & 4.

Maathai Supermarkets, often referred to simply as Maathai, is a supermarket chain in Kenya.

The Kenol–Isiolo Highway, is a planned dual carriage highway in Kenya. The highway would link Kenol, in Machakos County, to the towns of Ruiru and Thika, in Kiambu County, Kabati and Makuyu in Muranga County, Sagana and Kibirigwi in Kirinyaga County, Karatina and Kiganjo in Nyeri County, Nanyuki in Laikipia County, Timau in Meru County and Isiolo, in Isiolo County.

References

  1. ↑ Kenya National Bureau of Statistics: the town sits on land whose owner before the colonial period was Maina "kicuma" Wamwirua. Population of local authorities [ permanent dead link ]
  2. ↑ Electoral Commission of Kenya: Registration centres by electoral area and constituency Archived 28 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ↑ "Karatina: economic changes and their impact on the economic activities of Mathira Division, Nyeri District, Kenya, 1902-1963". University of Nairobi . Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  4. ↑ Mwiti, Lee (18 December 2017). "Uchumi Supermarkets announces closure Karatina branch". The Standard. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  5. ↑ "Student striped naked by police awarded Sh4m". The Standard. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  6. ↑ "Karatina University profile" . Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  7. ↑ "Kirigu Primary School". Kenya Primary Schools. Kenya Primary Schools. Retrieved 18 May 2019.

0°28′54″S37°07′30″E / 0.4817°S 37.1251°E / -0.4817; 37.1251

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.