Machakos County

Introduction

Machakos County is located in Eastern Province and had a total population of 1,503,000 people in 2024. In 2019, the county had a population of 1,421,932 people and 402,466 households. The average household size in Machakos County was 3.5 people per household in 2019. 

Machakos has a total land area of 6,012.7 square kilometers and had a population density of 235 people per square kilometer in 2019.

Machakos County is bordered to the North by Embu, to the East by Kitui, to the South by Makueni, to the South West by Kajiado, to the West by Nairobi and Kiambu, and to the North West by Murang'a. 

Machakos County has nine sub-counties: Athi River, Kalama, Kangundo, Kathiani, Machakos, Masinga, Matungulu, Mwala, and Yatta.

Machakos County Economy

Machakos County had an average Gross County Product at current prices of Ksh 378.4 billion between 2018 and 2022, representing an average gross value added of 3.2% in the same period.

Machakos County contributed, on average, 2.2% to agriculture, forestry, and fishing. The county also contributed 7.8% to manufacturing activities and 2.6% to services activities. 

Machakos County had a Gross County Product per capita of Ksh 257,025 in 2022.

Poverty Rates

Machakos County had an overall headcount poverty rate of 35.6% in 2021, with a total of 522,000 people estimated to live in poverty. During this period, Kenya had an overall poverty rate of 38.6%.

The hardcore poverty rate of Machakos in 2021 was 2%, with an estimated 29,000 people living in extreme poverty. By comparison, Kenya’s hardcore poverty rate was 5.8% in 2021.

Machakos also had a food poverty rate of 29%, with 426,000 people estimated to live in food poverty. Kenya had a food poverty rate of 30.5% in the same year.

The map below shows the distribution of poverty by constituency in Machakos County in 2019: Kangundo 21%, Kathiani 20.6%, Machakos 21.6%, Masinga 26.1%, Matungulu 23.5%, Mavoko 18.3%, Mwala 33.6%, and Yatta 27.2%.

The mean monthly food and non-food expenditure in Machakos County was Ksh 3,336 and Ksh 4,088 in 2021. The share of expenditure on food was 54.2%, while the share on non-food items was 45.8%. 

The major source of household food consumption in Machakos was purchase or stock 84.6%, own production 13.4%, and gifts 2%.

The mean and median per adult equivalent consumption expenditure was Ksh 7,425 and Ksh 5,463 in 2021.

Machakos County Demographics

Machakos County had a population of 1,421,932 in 2019, consisting of 710,701 males, 711,191 females, and 31 intersex. Machakos had a median age of 22 years in 2019. 

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

Marital Status

The percentage of women aged 12 and above in Machakos County who were never married in 2019 was 37.2%, while those in monogamous unions were 52.4%. On the other hand, the distribution of the population in polygamous marriages was 1% in 2019, while the widowed in Machakos were 6.5%. The share of the divorced and separated in Machakos was 0.9% and 1.9%, respectively.

Among men aged 12 and above, the percentage of those who were never married in Machakos was 46.9%. In comparison, those who were married monogamous were 48.4%. Men in polygamous marriages in the county were 1%, while the widowed were 1.2%. The percentage of divorced or separated men in Machakos County was 0.7% and 1.7%, respectively.

According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey, the median age at first marriage among women aged 25-49 in 2022 was 22.2 years. In contrast, the median age at first marriage among men aged 30-54 in 2022 was 25.4 years.

Polygyny

The percentage of married women aged 15-49 in Machakos County who had one or more co-wives in 2022 was 2.6%, while those without a co-wife were 84.7%.

Among married men aged 15-49 in 2022, those with more than two wives in Machakos were 1.8%, while those with one wife were 98.2%.

Marriage Registration

The percentage of currently married women in Machakos whose current marriage was registered with the civil authorities in 2022 was 17.4%. Those whose current marriage was registered with the civil authority and who had a marriage certificate were 15%.

Teenage Marriages

The proportion of married males aged 12-15 in Machakos County was 3.6% in 2019, while the proportion of married females of the same age group was 3.7%. The proportion of married females aged 12-18 in the county was 4.6%.

The rate of teenage pregnancies in Machakos County, consisting of women aged 15-19 who have ever been pregnant, was 11.3% in 2022.

Total Fertility Rate 

The Total Fertility Rate in Machakos County was 2.7 births per woman in 2019, a decline of 25.6% from 3.6 births in 2009. By comparison, Kenya had a Total Fertility Rate of 3.4 births per woman in 2019, a drop of 28.6% from 4.8 births per woman in 2009.

The total youth fertility rate in Machakos County in 2019 was 0.9 births per woman. The national youth fertility rate in the same period was 1 birth per woman.

Machakos County had a Crude Birth Rate of 22.1 births per 1,000 population in 2019, a decline of 39% from 36.2 births per 1,000 population in 2009. Overall, Kenya’s Crude Birth Rate was 27.9 births per 1,000 population in 2019, a decline of 27.2% from 38.4 births per 1,000 population in 2009.

Place of Birth and Notification Status

The share of recent births in Machakos County that occurred in a health facility was 92.3% in 2019, while those that occurred in a non-health facility were 7.7%. In Kenya, the share of recent births occurring in health facilities was 85.8%, while those occurring in non-health facilities were 14%.

The share of recent births in Machakos County that were notified in 2019 was 94.6%, while those that were not notified were 5.3%. In Kenya, the % of notified births in 2019 were 90.4%, while those that were not notified were 9.3%.

Place of Death and Notification Status

In 2019, 61.7% of deaths in Machakos County occurred in a health facility, while 38% 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 Machakos County that were notified in 2019 was 96%. Overall, the share of deaths that were notified in Kenya in 2019 was 85.6%.

Machakos County had a Crude Death Rate (CDR) of 7.4deaths per 1,000 population in 2019. Overall, Kenya had a Crude Death Rate of 10.5%.

Religious Affiliation

The majority of residents of Machakos County are Protestants 582,456, followed by Catholics 500,155, and members of Evangelical Churches 217,122.

Development

1. The Rural Access Index (RAI) in Machakos County was 82%, representing the percentage of the population living within two kilometers of an all-weather road in 2019.
2. Household access to electricity in Machakos County was 48.2% in 2019, up from 17% in 2009.
3. Household access to improved sanitation in Machakos County was 88.8% in 2019, up from 62.7% in 2009.
4. Households access to safe drinking water in Machakos County was 56.6% in 2019, up from 39.4% in 2009.
5. Machakos had 95.8% of its public primary schools connected to electricity, ranking 24^th nationally in 2019.

The share of the population in Machakos County owning mobile phones in 2019 was 56.4%. Among women, 85.5% owned any type of mobile phone in Machakos County in 2022, while 50.7% owned a smartphone.

Among men, 77.1% in Machakos owned any kind of mobile phone in 2022, while 45.1% 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 80.3% and 87%, respectively^.

See Also

1. Kitui County
2. Makueni County
3. Mombasa County

References

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