According to http://www.opendata.go.ke/Counties/County-Poverty-Rates/rfxq-gvgu the richest county is Kajiado.This is data from 2005/6 and i believe it is not accurate.I think the top 10 richest counties,with the lowest poverty rates,right now:

1.Kiambu
2.Nairobi
3.Meru
4.Kajiado
5.Kirinyaga
6.Nyeri
7.Lamu
8.Muranga
9.Kericho
10.Narok

My list is abit similar to the Opendata list but with a few changes.I do not believe that Kajiado district has a poverty rate of only 12% thus making it the richest County.Narok County might be abit welthier than i have represnted mainly because of tourism revenues, but i am not sure how much of the revenue has trickled down to ordinary Kenyans.

Something interesting about the full list at open data is that,if all the counties had an average poverty rate of 22% just like Nairobi's,then Kenya would have moved closer to being a middle income country.

But it's surprising to see Kisumu County,Busia,Kakamega which should be much richer than Kajiado or Narok,having poverty rates of more than 50%.

Its hard to explain why Kisii,which has one of the most fertile lands in Kenya,and where famines or hunger are not known,still has a poverty rate of 59%.

In Short, Kenya is like a basketball team with 2 good players and 3 others who cant play basketball at all.

The Secret to kenya's economic success lies in lowering the poverty rates of counties like Kisumu,Nakuru,Uasin Gishu and Kisii.These are strategic counties with big commercial towns.

Ernest,i think larger families could explain it.Its tough to have a big household in Nairobi.

I think Kajiado is number one because it includes Kiserian ,Ngong and Ongata Rongai in kajiado North,which has a sizable middle class .All three do not have a big gap between their rich and their poor.No large slums next to them,so also their populations are not as big as Nairobi or the other wealthy areas .Kajiado Central and South are also not so populated .There population will also not be considered poor ,because they have numerous livestock and lots of land,which is considered wealth in Kenya.so when you get the average poverty rate for the whole county it ends up being lower.

I think Kajiado is number one because it includes Kiserian ,Ngong and Ongata Rongai in kajiado North,which has a sizable middle class .All three do not have a big gap between their rich and their poor.No large slums next to them,so also their populations are not as big as Nairobi or the other wealthy areas .Kajiado Central and South are also not so populated .There population will also not be considered poor ,because they have numerous livestock and lots of land,which is considered wealth in Kenya.so when you get the average poverty rate for the whole county it ends up being lower.

+1

Also the huge labour force that commutes daily from Nairobi and resides in Kajiado does address the poverty issue to certain extent.

You guys don't have provinces or States?

You guys don't have provinces or States?

For political reasons Provincial references shall stay with us for a long time to come but as per the new constitution they have been subdivided into semi autonomous Counties which are as yet still largely dependent on th central government.

Lamu?:uh:

Iam also shocked to see Lamu there? Could someone please explain cause the reality on the ground is quite different.

According to Open Data,the Kenyan Government Website, Lamu has a poverty rate of 30%, which is lower than Mombasa's,Kilifi and other Coast Counties.It is also much lower than the national average of around 46%.It is also the least populated county with around 25,000 people.This could explain the low poverty rate.Fishing and tourism are the main economic activities of the archipelago that is Lamu County.Ofcourse the average Lamu(an),is not as rich or wealthy as a nairobian,but i think wealth is fairly evenly distributed in the Islands.With the planned Lamu port and Rail Link,the poverty rate will drastically go down due to more opportunites in employment and business.But,massive uncontrolled immigration to the county needs to be checked if the locals are to benefit from the huge infrastructural projects.Lamu can ill afford to have Nairobi-like slums in the islands caused by an influx of job seekers.

What about Nakuru county...was also surprised by Lamu. The average family in Nakuru county has a higher standard of living than the one in Lamu in my opinion (excluding the filthy rich ones with beachfront properties).

I tend to agree with Kenguy on this one.

You guys don't have provinces or States?

We used to have provinces in the recent past.

Just noticing that most of those counties in the list used to make up the former Central province (4 counties) Rift Valley has 3 counties, Eastern and Coast provinces one each and of course Nairobi.

Another thing that stands out is that most of the counties mentioned either have large agricultural or tourism concerns or have a very close proximity to Nairobi (or a mixture of those qualities).

The Economic Activities of the counties.

1.Kiambu - Agriculture(tea and coffee) and Commercial (industry,real estate)
2.Nairobi - Commercial (financial,industrial,ICT)
3.Meru - Agriculture(Coffee and miraa/khat)
4.Kajiado - Agriculture and commercial light business
5.Kirinyaga - Mixed Farming
6.Nyeri - Agriculture
7.Lamu - Tourism and Fish Farming
8.Muranga - Agriculture
9.Kericho - Agriculture (tea)
10.Narok - Tourism

The Economic Activities of the counties.

1.Kiambu - Agriculture(tea and coffee) and Commercial (industry,real estate)
2.Nairobi - Commercial (financial,industrial,ICT, tourism)
3.Meru - Agriculture(Coffee and miraa/khat)
4.Kajiado - Agriculture and commercial light business,tourism
5.Kirinyaga - Mixed Farming
6.Nyeri - Agriculture, tourism
7.Lamu - Tourism and Fish Farming
8.Muranga - Agriculture
9.Kericho - Agriculture (tea)
10.Narok - Agriculture,Tourism

Modification reasons:

Nairobi: Tourism-Nairobi national park, conference tourism, regional transport hub.

Kajiado: Tourism- Amboseli National park.

Nyeri: Tourism- Aberdare National park, Mount Kenya.

Narok: Agriculture- One of Kenya's largest (if not the largest) wheat producing regions.

Modification reasons:

Nairobi: Tourism-Nairobi national park, conference tourism, regional transport hub.

Kajiado: Tourism- Amboseli National park.

Nyeri: Tourism- Aberdare National park, Mount Kenya.

Narok: Agriculture- One of Kenya's largest (if not the largest) wheat producing regions.

When i see nyeri,murang'a and kirinyaga appear in the list of richest counties, there is something absolutely wrong with our agriculture. think of the average size of the farms in these counties and you realise there is something wrong with the way we utilise our lands.

Very interesting stuff. How many counties does Kenya have? Also can someone post a map labelling the country's counties to give ignorant people such as myself a better perspective?

I've also been curious to see poverty figures for African countries by regions, I don't know why their aren't more indepth studies about that, it gives far better context than a general national figure.

^^
http://g47kenya.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Kenya-County-map-.jpg

Kenya has 47 counties/states.

Just found out that neither tourism, commercial business or agriculture contribute the largest share of wealth in Kajiado county. Most revenues come from mining. The Magadi Soda company is the main income earner in the county.

Just found out that neither tourism, commercial business or agriculture contribute the largest share of wealth in Kajiado county. Most revenues come from mining. The Magadi Soda company is the main income earner in the county.

Ohh okay!I wish each county had its own website with detailed information about economic and social dynamics of the county.Governance,politics and demographics.For example:

http://louisiana.gov/

The State of Louisiana website has everything from job openings to eateries etc.

Very interesting stuff. How many counties does Kenya have? Also can someone post a map labelling the country's counties to give ignorant people such as myself a better perspective?

I've also been curious to see poverty figures for African countries by regions, I don't know why their aren't more indepth studies about that, it gives far better context than a general national figure.

anything you want to find out about kenya socio-economic is right here. and yes it is a very credible govt source

http://opendata.go.ke/

^^
http://g47kenya.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Kenya-County-map-.jpg

Kenya has 47 counties/states.


Thought we had 48 counties? What about Southern Sudan?