Senate Approves Bid For Ruto's Hometown To Be Kenya's Fifth City

President William Ruto's hometown, Eldoret in Uasin Gishu County is one step closer to being the fifth city in the Republic of Kenya.

The Senate Standing Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations on Wednesday, September 20 approved a bid to confer the Municipality of Eldoret to city status.

In a report to the House, the committee said Eldoret has met the requirements to be a city as set out under Section 5 and the First Schedule of the Urban Areas and Cities Act, 2011.

According to the Urban Areas and Cities Act 2011, to qualify as a city, an urban area must have a population of at least 250,000 based on the previous census. 

President William Ruto acknowledges greetings from Eldoret residents on August 8, 2022. /DPPS

The Act further states that the President may, on the resolution of the Senate, confer the status of a city on a municipality that meets the set criteria, by grant of a charter in the prescribed form.

Other requirements to confer municipality a city status include; an integrated urban area or city development plan and demonstrable good system and records of prudent management.

Additionally, the municipality must have infrastructural facilities, including but not limited to roads, street lighting, markets and fire stations, and an adequate capacity for disaster management as well as a capacity for functional and effective waste disposal.

How Eldoret Got to City Status

While considering the application for conferment of city status to Eldoret Municipality, the committee had several discussions with the Speaker of the Senate Amason Kingi, the Senator hailing from Uasin Gishu County and even the National Executive.

The committee carried out a county visit to meet with both arms of the County Government of Uasin Gishu County and to take a guided tour of the various amenities and services as listed in the first schedule of the Urban Areas and Cities Act, 2011.

A public participation engagement was also organised for the committee to engage the citizens and listen to their views on the application.

The report noted that the population of Eldoret is estimated at 475,716 people, consisting of 237,223 men and 238,477 women as per the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics Population and Housing Census of 2019, way past the 250,000 required population.

It added that the Municipality of Eldoret has an Integrated Urban Development Plan for the period (2021-2026) and also has a Spatial Plan and a Local Physical and Land Use Development Plan.

“The municipality has the capacity to generate sufficient revenue to sustain its operation since its revenue potential is Ksh2.5 billion, with the highest actual collection of Sh900 million in the last financial year,” it noted.

The report went on to state that the municipality also has the capacity to collect its own source revenue from markets, single business permits, land rates, street parking, and bus parks.

“The County Government of Uasin Gishu in collaboration with the Kenya National Museums should ensure plans to construct a museum in Eldoret town are fast-tracked since this is a requirement under the First Schedule of the Urban Areas and Cities Act, 2011,” the report stated.

Members of the committee embarked on a fact-finding mission upon receipt of the Uasin Gishu County Assembly’s resolution to adopt the report of the Ad Hoc on the conferment of city status to the Municipality of Eldoret.