Marsabit County

Introduction

Marsabit County is located in Eastern Province and had a total population of 527,000 people in 2024. According to the 2019 census, Marsabit had a total population of 459,785 people, comprising 77,495 households and an average household size of 5.8 people per household.

Marsabit has a total land area of 70,944.1 square kilometres and a population density of 6 people per square kilometre.

Marsabit County is bordered to the North by Ethiopia, the East by Wajir, the South East by Isiolo, the South by Samburu, and the West by Turkana.

Sub-counties in Marsabit County include Loiyangalani, Marsabit Central, Marsabit North, Marsabit South, Moyale, North Horr, and Sololo.

Marsabit County Economy

Marsabit had an average Gross County Product at current prices of Ksh 73.9 billion between 2018 and 2019, representing an average county contribution to Gross Value Added of 0.6%.

The county's average contribution to agriculture, forestry, and fishing activities was 0.6%, while its contribution to manufacturing activities was 0.1%. Marsabit contributed, on average, 0.4% to service activities within the same period.

Marsabit County had a Gross County Product per capita of Ksh 146,733 in 2022.

Poverty Rates

Marsabit County had an overall headcount poverty rate of 65.9%, with an estimated 321,000 people living in poverty in 2021. By comparison, Kenya had an overall poverty rate of 38.6% in the same year.

The hardcore poverty rate in Marsabit County was 16.7%, with an estimated 81,000 people living in extreme poverty in 2021. Kenya, on the other hand, had a hardcore poverty rate of 5.8% in the same year.

Marsabit County had a food poverty rate of 55.6% in 2021, and the county's estimated number of people living in food poverty was 270,000. Overall, Kenya had a food poverty rate of 30.5% in 2021.

The map below shows the distribution of poverty by constituency in Marsabit County in 2019: Laisamis 55.8%, Moyale 35.9%, North Horr 16.2%, and Saku 75.1%.

The mean monthly food and non-food expenditure in Marsabit County was Ksh 2,400 and Ksh 2,383 in 2021. The percentage share of mean monthly food expenditure in the cunty was 62.1%. In comparison, the percentage share of non-food expenditure was 37.9%. 

 In 2021, the major sources of household food consumption in Marsabit County were purchase or stock 86.8%, own production 4.5%, and gifts 8.7%.

The mean and median per adult equivalent consumption expenditure were Ksh 4,783 and Ksh 3,846, respectively.

Marsabit County Demographics

Marsabit County had a total population of 459,785 people in 2019, consisting of 243,548 males, 216,219 females, and 18 intersex. Marsabit had a median age of 14 years in 2019.

The table below shows the population distribution in Marsabit County by sex and sub-county in 2019. 

Marital Status

The percentage of women in Marsabit County aged 12 and above who were never married was 39.3%. In comparison, those who were married monogamous was 48.9%. On the other hand, the percentage of women who were married polygamous was 3.9%, and the widowed were 5.6%. The distribution of the divorced and separated in Marsabit County was 1.4% and 0.8%, respectively.

Among men aged 12 and above in Marsabit County, the percentage distribution of the never-married was 56.7%. In comparison, those who were married monogamous was 38.2%. The distribution of those who married polygamous was 3.5%, and the widowed were 0.5%. The divorced and separated in the county were 0.5% and 0.4%, respectively.

According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey, the median age at first marriage among women aged 20-49 in Marsabit County was 19.5 years in 2022. The median age at first marriage among women aged 25-49 in the county was 19.7 years in 2022. Among men in Marsabit County aged 30-54, the median age at first marriage in 2022 was 27.5 years.

Polygyny

The percentage of women aged 15-49 in Marsabit County who had one or more co-wives in 2022 was 10.5%. The percentage of those with zero co-wives was 89.5%, those with one co-wife 8.8%, and more than two co-wives 10.5%.

Among men aged 15-49 in Marsabit, 97.2% had one wife, and 2.8% had more than two wives in 2022.

Marriage Registration

The percentage of currently married women in Marsabit County whose marriage was registered with the civil authorities was 3.4% in 2022, while those with a marriage certificate was 3.4%.

Teenage Marriages

The proportion of married males aged 12-15 and 12-18 in Marsabit County was 5.8% and 5%, respectively, in 2019. The proportion of married females of the same age groups was 6.6% and 11%.

The rate of teenage pregnancies in Marsabit County, consisting of women aged 15-19 who have ever been pregnant, was 29.4% in 2022.

Total Fertility Rate

Marsabit County had a Total Fertility Rate of 7 births per woman in 2019, a 22.1% increase from a Total Fertility Rate of 5.7 births per woman in 2009. Overall, Kenya had a total fertility rate of 3.4 births per woman in 2019, a decline of 28.6% from a TFR of 4.8 births per woman in 2009.

Marsabit County had a youth fertility rate of 1.1 births per woman in 2019. By comparison, Kenya had a youth fertility rate of 1 birth per woman in the same year.

The Crude Birth Rate of Marsabit County was 44.3 births per 1,000 population in 2019, a decline of 2.4% from a Crude Birth Rate of 45.4 births per 1,000 population in 2009. By comparison, Kenya had a crude birth rate of 27.9 births per 1,000 people in 2019, a decline of 27.2% from a crude birth rate of 38.4 births per woman in 2009.

Place of Birth and Notification Status

The share of recent births in Marsabit County occurring in a health facility was 56.5%. In comparison, those in a non-health facility were 43.3% in 2019. In Kenya, the share of recent births occurring in a health facility in 2019 was 85.8%, while those occurring in a non-health facility was 14%.

The share of recent births in Marsabit County that were notified in 2019 was 73%, while those that were not notified were 26.7%. Overall, the share of recent births in Kenya that were notified was 90.4% in 2019, while those that were not notified were 9.3%.

Place of Death and Notification Status

In 2019, 28.7% of deaths in Marsabit County occurred in a health facility, while 69.8% occurred in the community. In Kenya, 59% of deaths in 2019 occurred in a health facility, while 40% did not occur in a health facility.

The share of deaths in Marsabit County that were notified in 2019 was 44.8%. Overall, the share of deaths that were notified in Kenya in 2019 was 85.6%.

Marsabit County had a Crude Death Rate (CDR) of 12.9 deaths per 1,000 population in 2019. Overall, Kenya had a Crude Death Rate of 10.5%.

Religious Affiliation

The majority of residents of Marsabit County are Islam 217,079, followed by Catholics 99,579, and Traditionalists 69,372.

Development

1. The Rural Access Index (RAI) in Marsabit County was 5%, representing the percentage of the population living within two kilometres of an all-weather road in 2019.
2. Household access to electricity in Marsabit County was 21.2% in 2019, up from 7.5% in 2009.
3. Household access to improved sanitation in Marsabit County was 43% in 2019, up from 25.9% in 2009.
4. Household access to safe drinking water in Marsabit County was 46.4% in 2019, up from 38.2% in 2009.
5. Marsabit had 26.4% of its public primary schools connected to electricity, ranking 42^nd nationally in 2019.

The share of the population in Marsabit County owning mobile phones in 2019 was 29%. Among women, 73.3% owned any type of mobile phone in Marsabit County in 2022, while 13.1% owned a smartphone.

Among men, 81.4% of Marsabit's population owned any kind of mobile phone in 2022, while 36% owned a smartphone. The percentage of men and women who had used a mobile phone for financial transactions in the year preceding the 2022 KDHS survey was 72.7% and 42.7%, respectively^.

See Also

1. Isiolo County
2. Mandera County
3. Wajir County
4. Turkana County
5. Garissa County

References

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19. Commission on Revenue Allocation. (2022). Kenya County Factsheet (3rd ed., p. 120).