Samburu County | |
|---|---|
 Brick Construction in Samburu | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Location of Samburu County in Kenya | |
| Coordinates:1°10′N36°40′E / 1.167°N 36.667°E /1.167; 36.667 | |
| Country |  Kenya |
| Formed | 4 March 2013 |
| Capital | Maralal |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Jonathan Lati lelelit |
| Area | |
• Total | 20,182.5 km2 (7,792.5 sq mi) |
| Population (2019) | |
• Total | 310,327 |
| • Density | 15/km2 (40/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (EAT) |
| Website | samburu |
Samburu County is acounty in the formerRift Valley Province,Kenya which covers an area of roughly 21,000 km2 (8,000 mi2) in northernKenya where theSamburu,Turkana and many other tribes live. It stretches north from theWuaso Ng'iro River to the south ofLake Turkana. According to the 2019 census, the county had a population of 310,327.[1]
Within Samburu County are the towns ofMaralal (the capital and largest town),[2]Baragoi,Archers Post,South Horr,Wamba,Lodosoit, andKisima.
It also includes theSamburu National Reserve,Bisanadi National Reserve, andBuffalo Springs National Reserve,Mount Ng'iro,Ndoto Mountains,Mathews Range (Ol Doinyo Lenkiyo),Kirisia Hills, andLoroki Forest.
The main access road to Samburu County is theA4 road fromRumuruti-Maralal-Baragoi, which as of 2019 was being tarmacked from Rumuruti up to Maralal.[3]
There is a town namedSamburu inKwale County, Kenya, but it is not related to Samburu County or Samburu people.
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 76,908 | — |
| 1989 | 108,884 | +41.6% |
| 1999 | 143,547 | +31.8% |
| 2009 | 223,947 | +56.0% |
| 2019 | 310,327 | +38.6% |
| source:[4] | ||
Religion in Samburu County[5]
| Religion (2019 Census) | Number |
|---|---|
| Catholicism | 176,566 |
| Protestant | 54,349 |
| Evangelical Churches | 18,339 |
| African instituted Churches | 4,313 |
| Orthodox | 207 |
| Other Cristian | 6,760 |
| Islam | 2,849 |
| Hindu | 71 |
| Traditionists | 30,433 |
| Other | 4,686 |
| No Religion/Atheists | 7,428 |
| Don't Know | 1,945 |
| Not Stated | 11 |
The county has three constituencies:Samburu East,Samburu West, andSamburu North. The headquarters of Samburu Central is Maralal, Samburu North is Baragoi and headquarters for Samburu East is Wamba although there has been controversy about the headquarters of Samburu East. Some schools of thought proposed Archers Post, a rapidly growing town, while others proposed Wamba town a less rapidly growing town.[6]
| Authority | Type | Population* | Urban pop.* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maralal | Town | 24,612 | 16,281 |
| Samburu | County | 118,935 | 18,507 |
| Total | – | 143,547 | 34,788 |
| * 1999 census. Source:[7] | |||
| Division | Population* | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| Baragoi | 19,884 | Baragoi |
| Kirisia | 47,072 | Mararal |
| Lorroki | 25,571 | Suguta mar mar |
| Nyiro | 15,551 | |
| Wamba | 24,155 | Wamba |
| Waso | 10,314 | |
| Total | 143,547 | - |
| * 1999 census. Sources:[8] | ||
The Samburu County Government is headed by Governor Jonathan Lati Leleliit who won the Samburu County's gubernatorial race in the 2022 general elections under theUnited Democratic Alliance (UDA). He garnered 40,740 votes against Dr. Richard Lesiyampe of the Jubilee Party who got 26,834 votes, and Daniel Lekupe an independent candidate, who garnered 1,847 votes, coming in third, and Richard Leiyagu who came last with 771 votes. He succeeded the former governor,Moses Lenolkulal, who retired after two terms in office.[9] A member of the national Jubilee party, Lenolkulal was the first governor following Kenya's devolution to county administrations.[10]
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