Nyeri County

Introduction

Nyeri County is located in Central Kenya and had a total population of 844,000 in 2024. According to the Census, Nyeri had a total population of 759,164 people in 2019, comprising 248,050 households. The average household size in Nyeri County was 3 people per household.

Nyeri has a total land area of 3,325 square kilometers and had a population density of 228 people per square kilometer in 2019.  

Nyeri County is bordered to the North by Laikipia, the North East by Meru, the East by Kirinyaga, the South by Murang'a, and the West by Nyandarua.

Nyeri has ten sub-counties: Tetu, Kieni East, Kieni West, Mathira East, Mathira West, Nyeri South, Mukurwe-ini, Nyeri Central, Mt. Kenya Forest, and Aberdare Forest.

Nyeri County Economy

Nyeri County had an average Gross County Product at current prices of Ksh 243.04 billion between 2018 and 2022, with the county contributing, on average, 2% to the Gross Value Added in the same period.

Nyeri County's contribution to agriculture, forestry, and fishing activities was 3.3%, while its contribution to manufacturing activities was 1.5%. The county's average contribution to service activities was 1.8%.

Nyeri County had the third highest Gross County Product per capita in Kenya at Ksh 293,944 in 2022, following Mombasa with Ksh 439,390 and Nairobi at Ksh 723,335.

Poverty Rates

Nyeri County had an overall poverty rate of 26.4% in 2021, with an estimated 203,000 people living in poverty. Overall, the national poverty rate in the same year was 38.6%.

Nyeri also had a hardcore poverty rate of 0.5%, with roughly 4,000 people living in extreme poverty. In Kenya, the hardcore poverty rate was 5.8% in 2021.

The food poverty rate in Nyeri County in 2021 was 17.5%, with 135,000 people estimated to be living in food poverty. In Kenya, the overall food poverty rate in 2021 was 30.5%.

The map below shows the distribution of poverty by constituency in Nyeri County in 2019: Kieni 10.8%, Mathira 11.2%, Mukurwe-Ini 40.7%, Nyeri Town 30.3%, Othaya 53.7%, and Tetu 8.4%.

The mean monthly food and non-food expenditure in Nyeri County was Ksh 3,580 and Ksh 3,923. The share of expenditure on food was 55.4%, while the share of expenditure on non-food items was 44.6% in 2021. 

The major sources of household food in Nyeri were purchase or stock 73.5%, own production 22.5%, and gifts 4%.

The mean and median per adult equivalent consumption expenditure was Ksh 7,503 and Ksh 6,047 in 2021.

Nyeri County Demographics

Nyeri County had a total population of 759,164 people in 2019, consisting of 374,288 males, 384,845 females, and 31 intersex. Nyeri had a median age of 26 years in 2019.

Marital Status

The percent distribution of women aged 12 and above in Nyeri County who were never married in 2019 was 37.7%, while those who were monogamous were 48.4%. On the other hand, the distribution of those who married polygamous was 0.4%, and the divorced was 1.2%. The share of the divorced and separated in Nyeri County was 1.2% and 3.6%, respectively.

In Nyeri men aged 12 and above, the distribution of those never married was 44.8%. In comparison, those in monogamous unions were 48.4% in 2019. On the other hand, those married polygamous were 0.8% while the widowed were 1.6%. The percentage distribution of the divorced and separated in Nyeri County was 0.8% and 3.3%, respectively, in 2019.

According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey, the median age at first marriage among women aged 25-49 in Nyeri County was 22.9 years in 2022, while the median age at first marriage among men aged 30-54 in the county was 27.3 years.

Polygyny

The percentage of married women aged 15-49 in Nyeri County who had one or more co-wives in 2022 was 4.1%. Those without co-wives were 81.3%, while those with only a single co-wife were 4.1%.

Among married men aged 15-49 in Nyeri County, 98.4% had only one wife, while 1.6% had more than two wives.

Marriage Registration

The percentage of currently married women aged 15-49 in Nyeri County whose current marriage was registered with civil authorities in 2022 was 20.1%. Those whose current marriage was registered with civil authorities and had a marriage certificate were 16.8%.

Teenage Marriages

The proportion of married males aged 12-15 in Nyeri County was 2.8% in 2019. Similarly, the proportion of married females aged 12-15 in Nyeri was 2.8%. Among females aged 12-18, the married proportion was 3.4% in 2019.

The rate of teenage pregnancies in Nyeri County, comprising of women aged 15-19 who have ever been pregnant, was 4.5% in 2022.

Total Fertility Rate

Nyeri County had a Total Fertility Rate of 2.9 births per woman in 2019. By comparison, Kenya had a total fertility rate of 3.4 births per woman in the same year.

Nyeri's total youth fertility rate was 0.8 births per woman in 2019. Overall, the national youth fertility rate comprising those aged 15-24 was 1 birth per woman in 2019.

Nyeri had a Crude Birth Rate of 20.8 births per 1,000 population in 2019, a decline of 43.4% from a Crude Birth Rate of 36.8 births per 1,000 population in 2009. Kenya's crude birth rate in 2019 was 27.9 births per 1,000 population, 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 Nyeri County in a health facility in 2019 was 98.6%, while those in non-health facilities were 1.1%. In Kenya, the share of recent births occurring in health facilities in 2019 was 85.8%, while those occurring in non-health facilities were 14%.

The share of births in Nyeri County that were notified in 2019 was 98.7%, while those that were not notified were 1.2%. By comparison, the share of recent births in Kenya that were notified in 2019 was 90.4%, while those who were not notified were 9.3%.

Place of Death and Notification Status

In 2019, 68.7% of deaths in Nyeri County occurred in a health facility, while 31% 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 Nyeri County that were notified in 2019 was 97.8%. Overall, the share of deaths that were notified in Kenya in 2019 was 85.6%.

Nyeri County had a Crude Death Rate (CDR) of 10.2 deaths per 1,000 population in 2019. Overall, Kenya had a Crude Death Rate of 10.5%.

Religious Affiliation

The majority of residents of Nyeri County are Protestants 285,723, followed by Catholics 210,407, and Evangelical Churches 145,046.

Development

1. The Rural Access Index (RAI) in Nyeri County was 94%, representing the share of the population living within two kilometers of an all-weather road in 2019.
2. Household access to electricity in Nyeri County was 72% in 2019, up from 26.31% in 2009.
3. Household access to improved sanitation in Nyeri County was 94.4% in 2019, up from 74.3% in 2009.
4. Household access to safe drinking water in Nyeri County was 82.1% in 2019, up from 65.1% in 2009.
5. Nyeri had 100% of its public primary schools connected to electricity, ranking 1^st highest in the country in 2019.

The share of the population in Nyeri County owning mobile phones in 2019 was 64.1%. Among women, 89.8% owned any type of mobile phone in Nyeri County in 2022, while 61.9% owned a smartphone.

Among men, 90.5% in Nyeri owned any kind of mobile phone in 2022, while 56.1% 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 87.9% and 85.9%, respectively^.

See Also

1. Kiambu County
2. Murang’a County
3. Kirinyaga County
4. Nyandarua County

References

1. KNBS. (2022). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Analytical report on population projections (Vol. XVI, pp. 23-25).
2. KNBS. (2022). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Population by county and subcounty (Vol. I, p. 7).
3. KNBS. (2019). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Population by county and subcounty (Vol. I, p. 9).
4. KNBS. (2019). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Population by county and subcounty (Vol. I, p. 10).
5. KNBS. (2023). 2023 Gross County Product: Measuring the economic evolution of counties (pp. 8-10).
6. KNBS. (2023). 2023 Gross County Product: Measuring the economic evolution of counties (pp. 15-21).
7. KNBS. (2023). The Kenya Poverty Report: Based on the 2021 Kenya Continuous Household Survey (pp. 35-47).
8. Commission on Revenue Allocation. (2022). Kenya County Factsheet (3rd ed., p. 120).
9. KNBS. (2023). The Kenya Poverty Report: Based on the 2021 Kenya Continuous Household Survey (pp. 27-31).
10. KNBS. (2022). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Analytical report on fertility and nuptiality (Vol. VI, pp. 14-19).
11. KNBS and ICF. 2023. Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022: Volume 1. Nairobi, Kenya, and Rockville, Maryland, USA: KNBS and ICF. (p. 143).
12. KNBS and ICF. 2023. Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022: Volume 1. Nairobi, Kenya, and Rockville, Maryland, USA: KNBS and ICF. (pp. 137-140).
13. KNBS and ICF. 2023. Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022: Volume 1. Nairobi, Kenya, and Rockville, Maryland, USA: KNBS and ICF. (pp. 135-136).
14. KNBS. (2022). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Analytical report on fertility and nuptiality (Vol. VI, pp. 19-21).
15. KNBS and ICF. 2023. Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022: Volume 1. Nairobi, Kenya, and Rockville, Maryland, USA: KNBS and ICF. (pp. 169-170).
16. KNBS. (2022). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Analytical report on fertility and nuptiality (Vol. VI, pp. 34-42).
17. KNBS. (2022). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Analytical report on fertility and nuptiality (Vol. VI, pp. 43-46).
18. KNBS. (2019). 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Distribution of population by socioeconomic status (Vol. IV, p. 422).
19. Commission on Revenue Allocation. (2022). Kenya County Factsheet (3rd ed., p. 120).