Makueni County

Makueni County
Population (state) - population density	987,653 population (2019) 123 population / km²
surface	8,008.9 km²
Coordinates	2 ° 0 ′  S , 37 ° 45 ′  E Coordinates: 2 ° 0 ′  S , 37 ° 45 ′  E
ISO 3166-2	KE-23

Makueni County (until 2010 Makueni District ) is a county in southern Kenya . Its capital is Wote . In 2019, 987,653 people lived in the 8008.9 km² county.

The area, which was part of Machakos County until 1992 , is divided into sixteen divisions. The climate is arid to semi-arid, with Makueni County being hot and dry for most of the year.

Topography and geology

The county is at an altitude of 600 m above sea level at the south end and 1900 m in Mbooni and the Kilungu Hills . Only 2.2% of the county's area is forest. There are three types of soil in Makueni County, red clay soil in the mountains and in parts of the lowlands, sandy soil in the center of the district and vertisol in the south. The soils are not considered particularly fertile. The Athi River flows through the district as a permanent water-bearing river.

Infrastructure

In 2002 the county had 245 km of asphalt roads, almost 550 km of the road network was gravel, the rest consists of dirt roads that sometimes become impassable during the rainy season. In 2002 there were 24 telephone booths and 66 post offices, as well as five financial institutions. The energy needs are met mainly by wood and coal, only 9 of the 500 commercial centers in the county had electricity in 2002. Only a fifth of households in the region have direct access to clean water.

economy

More than 60% of the county's people make a living from ranching and farming, with only 22% of the county's land being arable. The ranchers concentrate on Boran cattle , zebus , goats and sheep . Ayrshire , Guernsey , Holstein and Jersey cattle are mainly bred on non-native cattle . In agriculture, maize, beans, broad beans and cow beans are mainly grown for personal use, while cotton , sisal agaves and coffee beans are grown for trade . 62% of the population lived below the poverty line in 2002.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Volume I: Population by County and Sub-County. KNBS, accessed November 20, 2019 . 
2. ↑ ^{a b c d} Makueni District Profile  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 141 kB) at kenyafoodsecurity.org, accessed on May 4, 2011.  

Web links

Commons : Makueni County  - collection of pictures, videos, and audio files