About Narok County
OVERVIEW
Narok County Government was formed by the County Governments Act of 2012 as prescribed in the 2010 Constitution of Kenya. It is one of the 47 devolved units situated in the Great Rift Valley in the Southern part of the Country where it borders the republic of Tanzania. Narok County has its headquarters in Narok Town, off Narok Nakuru Road.
Narok County comprises six (6) sub-counties namely: Narok North, Narok West, Narok East, Narok South, Transmara East and Transmara West.
The County shares an economic block with Kajiado County known as the Narok Kajiado Economic Block (NAKAEB).The aim of the economic block is to improve the various sectors of the economy in order to increase exports to African countries and abroad.
The main economic activities in the county include pastoralism, crop farming, tourism and trade among other activities undertaken on a small scale. The famous Maasai Mara Game Reserve, featuring the Great Wildebeest Migration which is one of the “seven Wonders of the World" is located within the County. The county has a robust ecological system that residents depend on for agriculture, tourism, water and many other benefits.
As per the UN study/research for the Kenya Vision 2030, Narok County is marked as one of the fundamental counties for the achieving economic pillar. Key contributions are in the tourism sector through the Maasai Mara National Reserve and the agricultural sector through livestock farming.
The County is governed by His Excellency Honourable Patrick K. Ole Ntutu with Hon. Tamalinye Koech serving as the deputy governor. The county's senator is Ledama Ole Kina and the Women Representative is Rebeccah Tonkei.
The Members of Parliament include: Hon. Agnes Mantaine Pareyio (Narok North), Hon. Kitilai Ole Ntutu (Narok South), , Hon. Ken Aramat (Narok East), Hon.Gabriel Tongoyo (Narok West), Hon. Julius Lekakeny Ole Sunkuli (Transmara West), and Hon. Johana Ng'eno (Transmara East)
Narok County comprises six (6) sub-counties namely: Narok North, Narok West, Narok East, Narok South, Transmara East and Transmara West.
The County shares an economic block with Kajiado County known as the Narok Kajiado Economic Block (NAKAEB).The aim of the economic block is to improve the various sectors of the economy in order to increase exports to African countries and abroad.
The main economic activities in the county include pastoralism, crop farming, tourism and trade among other activities undertaken on a small scale. The famous Maasai Mara Game Reserve, featuring the Great Wildebeest Migration which is one of the “seven Wonders of the World" is located within the County. The county has a robust ecological system that residents depend on for agriculture, tourism, water and many other benefits.
As per the UN study/research for the Kenya Vision 2030, Narok County is marked as one of the fundamental counties for the achieving economic pillar. Key contributions are in the tourism sector through the Maasai Mara National Reserve and the agricultural sector through livestock farming.
The County is governed by His Excellency Honourable Patrick K. Ole Ntutu with Hon. Tamalinye Koech serving as the deputy governor. The county's senator is Ledama Ole Kina and the Women Representative is Rebeccah Tonkei.
The Members of Parliament include: Hon. Agnes Mantaine Pareyio (Narok North), Hon. Kitilai Ole Ntutu (Narok South), , Hon. Ken Aramat (Narok East), Hon.Gabriel Tongoyo (Narok West), Hon. Julius Lekakeny Ole Sunkuli (Transmara West), and Hon. Johana Ng'eno (Transmara East)
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Areas in Sq. Kms.
17,933.1
Population Projection @ 2018
1,130,703
Ratio of Male to Female
1:1
Latitude
0° 50´ and 1° 50´
Longitude
35° 28´ and 36° 25´ East
Rainfall range
2,500 mm- 500 mm
Temperatures range
200C (January- March) to 100C (June- September) with an average of 180C.
Sub-Counties and Area in Km2
| S/No. | Sub County | Area in Kilometres |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Transmara West | 2,526 |
| 2 | Transmara East | 320.5 |
| 3 | Narok South | 2,603.3 |
| 4 | Narok West | 5,452.7 |
| 5 | Narok North | 2,603.3 |
| 6 | Narok East | 2,059.5 |
As a function of devolution, Narok town is a vibrant, cosmopolitan town, reachable approximately 30 minutes by air and two hours by road from Kenya’s capital city, Nairobi.
Devolution has seen Narok County make significant developmental strides in the various sectors of the economy namely: Agriculture, Health, Roads and Infrastructure, Tourism as well as other sectors of the economy.
The county produces virtually most of Kenya’s barley and most of its wheat. The county is also the second largest producer of maize and a major producer of beef and milk. In addition, Narok has a vibrant horticulture sector and a sugar growing belt in the Mara region. The County Government has boosted agricultural and livestock farming because agriculture is the mainstay of the majority of the residents of Narok County.
To boost dairy farming, the Narok county government has procured and distributed milk coolers to various cooperatives managed by county dairy farmers for sustainable dairy farming.
To enhance quality and productive dairy farming, the county bought and distributed high quality breeds of bulls to the cooperative societies across the 6 sub-counties.
To guarantee sustainable dairy farming, the department of Agriculture has distributed Artificial Insemination (AI) kits to farmers, and has employed professional Artificial Insemination workers to give requisite support to farmers. This is a calculated effort towards the milk value chain development mission in Narok. Further, the department of agriculture regularly facilitates cross-border disease surveillance, which has so far seen approximately five (5) million livestock units vaccinated.
Towards boosting meat production, the county government has bought and distributed exceptionally high breed bulls to different wards. Different kinds of breeds including Boran and Sahiwal bulls were distributed to farmers’ cooperatives across the 30 wards in December 2018.
The Narok Level 5 Referral Hospital is now a fully equipped state of the art referral hospital with an ICU center, a High Dependency Unit; MRI and CT-scan services; and also serves as a cancer treatment center, where dialysis takes place and all other oncological services.
To ensure effective emergency healthcare services, Narok residents have access to free 24-hour ambulance services provided by 11 ambulances, which are effectively managed by professional paramedics.
Across the county, there are a total of 119 health facilities, 30 of them new and the others have undergone major face lifts. The facilities are stocked with essential commodities and medical supplies per quarter in order to ensure that residents have access to every kind of health service within Narok, including cancer patients, without them having to travel all the way to Nairobi.
The county government has opened, constructed and rehabilitated the majority of roads within the county and continues opening up feeder roads in order to facilitate timely transport of fresh and perishable farm produce to the markets. Development of roads infrastructure is very critical as it is a major catalyst for both social and economic development.
The county government also tarmacked the 5km road from the highway junction to Nairagie Enkare, which had initially been neglected for decades.
The Department of Roads has recently fully rehabilitated the full length of the road from Siyapei to Ntimama Ridge which is a very significant road that facilitates commerce within the county.
The improved road connectivity has enabled the people of Narok to be food secure.
Some of these roads include:
Emarti-Kabolecho-Olchobesei Road -30km
Ewuaso-Nyiro-Naroosura-Morijo Road -100Km
Kehancha-Lolgorian-Mararianda-Lemek-Nkorinkori -130Km
Emarti-Kabolecho-Olchobesei Road -40Km
NCPB-Oletukat-Iltumutum-Enkorika -30Km
Enengetia-Olokurto-Olpusimoru -45Km
Siyiapei-Olchorro -47Km
Oronkai-Tororek Road -27Km
Tarmacking of Narok Township Roads -10.1Km
The County government has put in place a county Act, the Maasai Mara Community Support Fund Act, which stipulates that 19% of the total revenue collected at the Mara goes to support community members around the Mara through support programmes in education, health and economic development, all aimed at encouraging community members to help in wildlife conservation. As a result, most members of surrounding communities have allowed the conversion of their huge tracts of land into wildlife conservancies.
To enable effective Mara management, the county government recruited and trained over 300 new rangers, who have now been deployed around the Mara to boost security.
Additionally, the county government facilitated the purchase of new communication gadgets to aid in the surveillance communication and management processes.
On matters of infrastructure development towards quick and easy access of the Maasai Mara though the Narok-Sekenani Gate, tarmacking of the road is on-going. The County government has also rehabilitated all the airstrips in the Maasai Mara. It is noteworthy that the county government of Narok has enhanced the revenue collection at the Mara, and presently records high revenue collection.
All these have contributed to the world-acclaimed Maasai Mara Game Reserve being named six times in six consecutive years as the winner of the World Travel Award for Best National Park in Africa, beating other competitive game parks in Africa such as those in South Africa, Tanzania and Botswana among others
Achievements in Agriculture
From historical watershed years of being a semi-arid sleepy region endowed with immense resources, yet known only for wheat and barley growing, Narok County is now emerging as a reservoir of agricultural produce, and arguably the bread basket of the emerging larger Nairobi Metropolis.The county produces virtually most of Kenya’s barley and most of its wheat. The county is also the second largest producer of maize and a major producer of beef and milk. In addition, Narok has a vibrant horticulture sector and a sugar growing belt in the Mara region. The County Government has boosted agricultural and livestock farming because agriculture is the mainstay of the majority of the residents of Narok County.
To boost dairy farming, the Narok county government has procured and distributed milk coolers to various cooperatives managed by county dairy farmers for sustainable dairy farming.
To enhance quality and productive dairy farming, the county bought and distributed high quality breeds of bulls to the cooperative societies across the 6 sub-counties.
To guarantee sustainable dairy farming, the department of Agriculture has distributed Artificial Insemination (AI) kits to farmers, and has employed professional Artificial Insemination workers to give requisite support to farmers. This is a calculated effort towards the milk value chain development mission in Narok. Further, the department of agriculture regularly facilitates cross-border disease surveillance, which has so far seen approximately five (5) million livestock units vaccinated.
Towards boosting meat production, the county government has bought and distributed exceptionally high breed bulls to different wards. Different kinds of breeds including Boran and Sahiwal bulls were distributed to farmers’ cooperatives across the 30 wards in December 2018.
Achievements in the Health Sector
Over the last 7 years, the county government has made remarkable strides in provision of health services turning the County into a quality and accessible healthcare services destination. To facilitate universal healthcare services for residents, the county government has partnered with NHIF to provide SUPA cover for residents since December 2018. So far over 15,000 residents are fully covered and can access healthcare services for free at all county hospitals.The Narok Level 5 Referral Hospital is now a fully equipped state of the art referral hospital with an ICU center, a High Dependency Unit; MRI and CT-scan services; and also serves as a cancer treatment center, where dialysis takes place and all other oncological services.
To ensure effective emergency healthcare services, Narok residents have access to free 24-hour ambulance services provided by 11 ambulances, which are effectively managed by professional paramedics.
Across the county, there are a total of 119 health facilities, 30 of them new and the others have undergone major face lifts. The facilities are stocked with essential commodities and medical supplies per quarter in order to ensure that residents have access to every kind of health service within Narok, including cancer patients, without them having to travel all the way to Nairobi.
Achievements in Roads Infrastructure
The county is gradually opening up for cross-county and inter-county trade through transformative infrastructural development. The now functional road network has been made possible by the availability of road maintenance equipment procured by the county government.The county government has opened, constructed and rehabilitated the majority of roads within the county and continues opening up feeder roads in order to facilitate timely transport of fresh and perishable farm produce to the markets. Development of roads infrastructure is very critical as it is a major catalyst for both social and economic development.
The county government also tarmacked the 5km road from the highway junction to Nairagie Enkare, which had initially been neglected for decades.
The Department of Roads has recently fully rehabilitated the full length of the road from Siyapei to Ntimama Ridge which is a very significant road that facilitates commerce within the county.
The improved road connectivity has enabled the people of Narok to be food secure.
Some of these roads include:
Achievements in Tourism
Given the significance of the tourism sector and the importance of Maasai Mara Game Reserve to the county economy, the county government has developed and is now implementing the strategic Mara Management Plan, which is focused on enhancing proper park management, improving coordination with tour operators, improving security for wildlife and tourists, and effectively handling human-wildlife conflict.The County government has put in place a county Act, the Maasai Mara Community Support Fund Act, which stipulates that 19% of the total revenue collected at the Mara goes to support community members around the Mara through support programmes in education, health and economic development, all aimed at encouraging community members to help in wildlife conservation. As a result, most members of surrounding communities have allowed the conversion of their huge tracts of land into wildlife conservancies.
To enable effective Mara management, the county government recruited and trained over 300 new rangers, who have now been deployed around the Mara to boost security.
Additionally, the county government facilitated the purchase of new communication gadgets to aid in the surveillance communication and management processes.
On matters of infrastructure development towards quick and easy access of the Maasai Mara though the Narok-Sekenani Gate, tarmacking of the road is on-going. The County government has also rehabilitated all the airstrips in the Maasai Mara. It is noteworthy that the county government of Narok has enhanced the revenue collection at the Mara, and presently records high revenue collection.
All these have contributed to the world-acclaimed Maasai Mara Game Reserve being named six times in six consecutive years as the winner of the World Travel Award for Best National Park in Africa, beating other competitive game parks in Africa such as those in South Africa, Tanzania and Botswana among others
