Homa Bay County

Introduction

Homa Bay County is located in Nyanza Province and had a population of 1,255,000 in 2024 and 1,131,950 people in 2019. The county had 262,036 households and an average household size of 4.3 people per household.

Homa Bay County had a total land area of 3,152.5 square kilometers and a population density of 359 people per square kilometer in 2019.

Homa Bay County is bordered to the South by Migori County, the West by Lake Victoria, the East by Kisii County and Nyamira County, and the North East by Kisumu County.

Homa Bay had eight sub-counties: Homa Bay, Ndhiwa, Rachuonyo North, Rachuonyo East, Rachuonyo South, Rangwe, Suba South, and Suba North.

Homa Bay County Economy

Homa Bay County had a Gross County Product of Ksh 162.195 billion, representing an average contribution of 1.3% to Gross Value Added between 2018 and 2022.

The county also contributed, on average, 2.3% to Agriculture, forestry, and fishing activities within the same period. On average, Homa Bay contributed 0.7% to manufacturing activities and 1% to service activities.

Homa Bay County had a Gross County Product per Capita of Ksh 134,223 in 2022.

Poverty Rates

Homa Bay County had an overall headcount poverty rate of 26.6% in 2021, with 310,000 people estimated to be living in poverty. The county also had a food poverty rate of 23.8%, with an estimated 278,000 people living in food poverty. Additionally, Homa Bay had a hardcore poverty rate of 0.4%, representing an estimated 5,000 people.

Overall, Migori County had a lower hardcore poverty rate than the national average of 5.8% and a lower overall poverty rate than the national average of 38.6%. Its estimated poverty rate was lower than the national food poverty rate of 30.5%.

The map below shows the distribution of poverty by constituency in Homa Bay County. Homa Bay Town had a poverty rate of 26.9%, Ndhiwa 19.9%, Mbita 39.9%, Suba 22.4%, Karachuonyo 17.8%, Rangwe 21.8%, Kasipul 20.4%, and Kabondo Kasipul 17.6%.

Overall, the mean share of income in Homa Bay spent on food was 56.8%, while 43.2% was spent on non-food items. The mean monthly food and non-food expenditure per adult equivalent in the county was Ksh 2,956 and 3,008, for a mean monthly total of Ksh 5,965. 

The mean and median per adult equivalent consumption expenditure in Homa Bay is Ksh 5,965 and Ksh 4,954, respectively.

The share of household food expenditure acquired from purchased stock in Homa Bay County is 63.6%, with 29.2% coming from own-source production and 7.2 from gifts.

Homa Bay County Demographics

Homa Bay County had 539,560 males, 592,367 females, and 23 intersex people for a total population of 1,131,950 in 2019. Homa Bay had a median age of 15 years in 2019.

The table below shows the population distribution in Homa Bay County by sub-county.

Marital Status

Among women aged 12 and above in Homa Bay County, 35.8% were never married, 44.4% were married monogamously, and 7.5% were married polygamously in 2019. In the same year, 11.5% of women in the county were widowed, 0.3% divorced, and 0.5% separated.

Among men of the same age range, 50.4% in Homa Bay were never married, 41.3% were married monogamously, and 6.2% were married polygamously. In the same year, 1.0% of the men were widowed, 0.3% were divorced, and 0.8% were separated in 2019.

According to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS), the median age at first marriage among women aged 20-49 in Homa Bay County was 19.1 years and 18.4 years among those aged 25-49. In men, the median age at first marriage in the county was 23.9 years for men aged 25-54 and 23.4 years for men aged 30-54.

Polygyny

According to KDHS data, 73.3% of women aged 15-49 in Homa Bay have no cowives. Among those with co-wives, 17.1% have a co-wife, while 7.8% have more than two co-wives. Overall, women with more than one co-wife in the county were 24.9%.

Among married men aged 15-49 in Homa Bay, KDHS data revealed that 85.7% had a single wife while 14.3% had more than two wives.

Marriage registration

The percentage of married women aged 15-49 in Homa Bay County whose marriage was registered by civil authorities was 11.4% compared to the national average of 19.3%. Among those with registered marriages, those with marriage certificates in Homa Bay were 8.2% compared to the national average of 15.6%.

Teenage marriages

In Homa Bay County, 4% of males aged 12-15 and 4.2% of females of the same age group were married in 2019. In addition, 4.0% of males aged 12-18 from the county and 6.2% of females of the same age group were married.

In 2022, the rate of teenage pregnancies, comprising of women aged 15-19 who had ever been pregnant at the time of the survey in Homa Bay, was 23.2%, higher than the national teenage pregnancy rate of 14.8%.

Total Fertility Rate

Homa Bay County had a total fertility rate (TFR) of 3.6 births per woman in 2019, a 40.4% decline from a TFR of 6.1 births in 2009. By comparison, Kenya had a TFR of 3.4 births per woman in 2019, a 28.6% drop from 4.8 births in 2009.

The Total Fertility Rate of the youth in Homa Bay County aged 15-24 was 1.3 births per woman.

Homa Bay County had a Crude Birth Rate (CBR) of 28.3 births per 1,000 population in 2019, a decline of 25.4% from 51.5 births per 1,000 population in 2009. In Kenya, the Crude Birth Rate in 2019 was 27.9 births per 1,000 population, a 10.5% decline from 38.4 births per 1,000 population in 2009.

Place of Birth and Notification Status

The percentage of births in Homa Bay occurring in health facilities in 2019 was 89.8%, while 10.1% occurred in a non-health facility. In Kenya, 85.8% of births in 2019 occurred in a health facility, while 14% did not occur in a health facility.

Birth notification in Homa Bay County in the last 12 months of the 2019 census was 91.3%, while 8.5% of the births were not notified to authorities. Overall, 90.4% of births in Kenya were notified, while 9.3% were not.

Place of Death and Notification Status

In 2019, 61.5% of deaths in Homa Bay County occurred in a health facility, while 37.9% 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 Homa Bay County that were notified in 2019 was 75.5%. Overall, the share of deaths that were notified in Kenya in 2019 was 85.6%.

Homa Bay County had a Crude Death Rate (CDR) of 8.7 deaths per 1,000 population in 2019. Overall, Kenya had a Crude Death Rate of 10.5%.

Religious Affiliation

Most residents of Homa Bay County are Protestants 433,102, followed by Evangelical Churches 241,060, and African Instituted Churches 200,900.

Development

1. The Rural Access Index (RAI) in Homa Bay County was 72%, representing the percentage of the population living within two kilometers of an all-weather road in 2019.
2. Household access to electricity in Homa Bay County was 18.5% in 2019, up from 35.3% in 2009.
3. Household access to improved sanitation in Homa Bay County was 74.50% in 2019, up from 40.7% in 2009.
4. Household access to safe drinking water in Homa Bay County was 51.9% in 2019, up from 28.3% in 2009.
5. Homa Bay had 97.2% of its public primary schools connected to electricity, ranking 19^th nationally in 2019.

The share of the population in Homa Bay County owning mobile phones in 2019 was 41.1%. Among women, 72% owned any type of mobile phone in Homa Bay County in 2022, while 26.9% owned a smartphone.

Among men, 76.8% in Homa Bay owned any kind of mobile phone in 2022, while 37.3% 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 84.9% and 80.9%, respectively.

See Also

1. Kisumu County
2. Migori County
3. Siaya County

References

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