Kericho County

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title: "Kericho County" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["kericho-county", "counties-of-kenya"] topic_path: "general/kericho-county" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kericho_County" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
official_name	Kericho County
settlement_type	County
image_skyline	Tea farming in Kericho 26.JPG
image_flag	Flag of Kericho County.gif
image_shield	Kericho County Court of Arms.png
image_map	Kericho County in Kenya.svg
map_caption	Location in Kenya
coordinates
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name	Kenya
established_title	Formed
established_date	4 March 2013
seat_type	Capital
seat	Kericho
leader_title	Governor
leader_name	Dr. Erick Mutai Equalizer
area_total_km2	2,454.5
population_total	901,777
population_as_of	2019
population_density_km2	auto
timezone	EAT
utc_offset	+3
website
::

| official_name = Kericho County | settlement_type = County | image_skyline = Tea farming in Kericho 26.JPG | image_caption = | image_flag = Flag of Kericho County.gif | image_blank_emblem = | image_shield = Kericho County Court of Arms.png | image_map = Kericho County in Kenya.svg | map_caption = Location in Kenya | coordinates = | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = Kenya | established_title = Formed | established_date = 4 March 2013 | seat_type = Capital | seat = Kericho | leader_title = Governor | leader_name = Dr. Erick Mutai Equalizer | area_total_km2 = 2,454.5 | area_land_km2 = | area_water_km2 = | elevation_m = | population_total = 901,777 | population_as_of = 2019 | population_density_km2 = auto | timezone = EAT | utc_offset = +3 | website = | footnotes = Kericho County is one of the 47 counties in Kenya. The county seats between longitude 35°02' and 35°40' East and between the equator and latitude 0°23' South with an altitude of about 2002m above sea level. It borders Uasin Gishu County (Eldoret County) to the North, Baringo County to the North-East, Nandi County to the North-West, Nakuru County to the East and Bomet County to the South, Kisumu County to the Northwest and Nyamira County to the West. It had a population of 901,777 (2019 census) and an area of 2,111 km². Its capital and largest town is Kericho.

Kericho is the leading tea-producing region in the country, widely recognized as Kenya`s "tea capital" and ancestral heartland of the Kipsigis sub-tribe of the Kalenjin tribal group indigenous to the region. Situated in the highlands west of the Rift Valley, the county is home to some of the largest and most productive tea estates in Africa. It is also home to the popular Ketepa brand, one of the major local tea companies based in the region.

The defunct Buret District is now part of Kericho County.

Physical and topical features

County slopes gently from 2500m to about 1,800m above the sea level. The county is surrounded by a number of hills such as Tinderet Hills to the North, Mau Escarpment and Londiani hills (Tuluap-Kipsigis). A good number of rivers emanate from the county including Chemosit, Kiptaret, Kipsonoi, Timbilil, Maramara, Itare, Nyando, Kipchorian and Malaget.

Climatic conditions

County has a temperature range between 10C - 29C and rainfall of 2,125mm p.a being highest in central part of county where they plant tea and 1,400 mm p.a. in lower parts of Soin and parts of Kipkelion. County has rainy seasons April to June and October to December.

Demographics

According to the 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census, Kericho County had a total population of 901,777 of which 450,741 are males, 451,008 females and 28 intersex persons. There are 206,036 household with an average household size of 4.4 persons per household and a population density 370 people per square kilometre.

The total population of Kericho is estimated to have grown significantly. Official projections from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) suggest that the county's population will reach approximately 1.2M by 2030-40, with a 2026 estimate of roughly one million people. ::data[format=table title="Distribution of Population by Sex and Sub-County"]

Sub-County	Male	Female	Intersex	Total
Belgut	72,508	72,564		145,072
Buret	98,823	100,642	5	199,470
Kericho East	86,671	83,947	7	170,625
Kipkelion	61,066	61,460	4	122,530
Londiani	68,570	69,000	10	137,580
Soin Sigowet	63,31036	63,395	2	126,500
Total	450,741	451,008	28	901,777
::

Source

Religion

Religion in Kericho County

::data[format=table]

Religion (2019 Census)	Number
Catholicism	99,191
Protestant	396,003
Evangelical Churches	262,307
African instituted Churches	55,903
Orthodox	2,949
Other Christian	38,915
Islam	2,423
Hindu	461
Traditionists	1,358
Other	11,322
No ReligionAtheists	25,030
Don't Know	838
Not Stated	163
::

Administrative and political units

Administrative units

There are six sub counties, thirty county assembly wards, eighty five locations and two hundred and nine sub-locations.

Electoral constituencies

The county has six constituencies:

• Ainamoi Constituency
• Belgut Constituency
• Bureti Constituency
• Kipkelion East Constituency
• Kipkelion West Constituency
• Sigowet–Soin Constituency Source

Political leadership

::data[format=table title=""]

No	Portrait	Governor's Name	Elected	Term of Office	Political Party	Deputy Governor	1	Paul Chepkwony	2013-2022	10 years	TBA	Lily Kirui	2	Eric Mutai	2022-2026	Incumbent	TBA	Fred Kirui
::

Prof. Paul Kiprono Chepkwony was the Governor serving his last term in office after being elected twice 2013 , 2017 and his deputy is Lily Kirui. Sen. Aaron Cheruiyot (Kiptoiyot) Aaron Cheruiyot is the Senator and was elected in 2015 after the first senator Charles Keter was appointed as the cabinet secretary for Ministry of Energy by President Uhuru Kenyatta. He was also re-elected in 2017. Florence Bore is the women representative and was elected in 2017 after winning against the Hellen Chelangat Chepkwony who was the first women representative for the county.

For Kericho County, the County Executive Committee comprises:- ::data[format=table title="County Executive Committee"]

Number
The Governor
The Deputy Governor
The County Secretary
The CEC Members
Total
::

Source

Members of Parliament in Kericho County 2017-2022

1. Hon. Maritim, Sylvanus of Jubliee Party Member of Parliament Ainamoi Constituency.
2. Hon. Koech, Nelson of Jubliee PartyMember of Parliament Belgut Constituency.
3. Hon. Mutai, Japheth Kiplangat of Jubliee Party Member of Parliament Bureti Constituency.
4. Hon. Limo, Kirui Joseph of Jubliee Party Member of Parliament Kipkelion East Constituency.
5. Hon. Kosgei, Hilary Kiplang’at of Jubliee Party Member of Parliament Kipkelion West Constituency
6. Hon. Koros, Benard Kipsengeret of Jubliee Party Member of Parliament Sigowet–Soin Constituency.

Economy

The county hosts 25 trading centres, 5,813 registered businesses, 5807 licensed retail traders and 5,740 licensed wholesale traders. In 2022, the county produced 432 million kilos of tea. The acquisition of these lands has long been controversial, particularly as it relates to the eviction of Kipsigis and Talai people from their land by British forces when Kenya was a British colony. The United Nations has criticised the British government for not providing "effective remedies and reparation" for colonial-era crimes, with representatives for these communities attempting to sue the British government through the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

There are a number of industries in Kericho such as cement industry (Rai Cement Limited) and steel industry (Prime Steel Limited), Soin Sugar Company all three of them located in Soin ward, 18 tea processing factories, in various sub-counties, dairy processing plants in various sub-counties and Kipkelion District coffee union process coffee in Fort Ternan, Kipkelion Sub-county. The use of tea plucking machines has been controversial in the area, leading to acts of industrial sabotage by disaffected youths.

Education

There are 1,222 ECD centres, 1,059 primary schools, and 494 secondary schools. The county has also teachers training colleges, 43 Youth Polytechnics, 80 adult training institutions and 11 technical training institutions. ::data[format=table title="Education Institutions in County"]

Category	Public	Private	Total	Enrolment
ECD Centres	695	527	1,222	92,528
Primary schools	681	378	1,059	371,844
Secondary schools	451	43	494	89,184
Youth Polytechnics	34	9	43	12,619
Technical Training Institutes	6	5	11	9,511
Adult Education Centres	80	13,397
::

Source

Health

Kericho County has a total of 435 operational health facilities. This total includes public, private, and faith-based providers that have been integrated into the national Social Health Authority (SHA) framework for service delivery. The county has achieved an immunization coverage of 90% for essential vaccines like the third dose of the pentavalent vaccine. In July 2025, Kericho rolled out a massive 10-day integrated campaign targeting 95% coverage for measles, rubella, and typhoid to close the immunity gaps that widened during the COVID-19 pandemic. ::data[format=table title="Health Facilities by Ownership"]

Government	*FBO	Private	NGO	TOTAL
Hospitals	7	2	5
Health centres	136	8	2	36
Dispensaries/Clinics	148	11	76	5
::

Source

Transport and communication

The county is covered by 1,110.7 km of road network. of this 411.1 km is covered by earth surface, 484.7 km is murram surface and 214.9 km is covered by bitumen.

There are 8 Post Offices with 2,299 installed letter boxes, 2,079 rented letter boxes and 220 vacant letter boxes.

References

References

1. "Kenya Census 2009".
2. "Kenya Districts". statoids.com.
3. "Second Generation County Integrated Development Plan CIDP 2018-2022 Kericho County".
4. (2018). "Second Generation County Integrated Development Plan CIDP 2018-2022 Kericho County". County Government of Kericho.
5. Munene, Evans. (2019-11-04). "2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Results".
6. "Wayback Machine".
7. (2019). "2019 Kenya Population and House Census: Population by County and Sub-county. Volume 1". Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.
8. "2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census Volume IV: Distribution of Population by Socio-Economic Characteristics".
9. interior_admin. "Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government".
10. (2010). "The Report of the Interim Independent Boundaries Review Commission (IIBRC): Delimitation of Constituencies and Recommendations on Local Authority Electoral Units and Administrative Boundaries for Districts and Other Units".
11. "Governors & Deputy Governors".
12. "Members of the Senate {{!}} The Kenyan Parliament Website".
13. "Women Representatives {{!}} KEWOPA KENYA".
14. "179. County executive committees - Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC)".
15. "Sylvanus Maritim".
16. "Hon. Maritim, Sylvanus {{!}} The Kenyan Parliament Website".
17. "Nelson Koech".
18. "Hon. Koech, Nelson {{!}} The Kenyan Parliament Website".
19. "Japheth Kiplangat Mutai".
20. "Hon. Mutai, Japheth Kiplangat {{!}} The Kenyan Parliament Website".
21. "Joseph Kirui Limo".
22. "Hon. Limo, Kirui Joseph {{!}} The Kenyan Parliament Website".
23. "Hilary Kiplang'at Kosgei".
24. "Hon. Kosgei, Hilary Kiplang'at {{!}} The Kenyan Parliament Website".
25. "Benard Kipsengeret Koros".
26. "Hon. Koros, Benard Kipsengeret {{!}} The Kenyan Parliament Website".
27. (30 October 2023). "Justice from the King?". [[New Internationalist]].
28. (3 August 2021). "UN criticises UK for failure to redress colonial-era landgrab in Kenya". [[The Guardian]].
29. (23 August 2022). "Kenyans seek to sue UK for alleged colonial abuses". [[BBC News]].
30. (23 May 2023). "Chaos as Kericho residents torch tea plucking machines". [[Daily Nation.
31. (2024-03-15). "Education office begins search for E graders in Kericho to join colleges – Kenya News Agency".
32. "EDUCATION, SOCIAL SERVICES, YOUTH AND CULTURE {{!}} KERICHO COUNTY".
33. (2015). "Kericho County Statistical Abstract 2015".
34. (2025-07-07). "Ministry of Health Launches 10-Day National Typhoid and Measles-Rubella Vaccination Campaign".
35. (2022-09-08). "Health Facilities in Kericho County. – Labflow Kenya".
36. "Health Services {{!}} Kericho County".
37. "Kenya Rural Roads Authority".
38. "Kenya Urban Roads Authority".

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