Nandi County
Introduction
Nandi County had a total population of 982,000 people in 2025. According to the 2019 population and housing census, the county had 885,711 people. Nandi had a total of 199,426 households and an average household size of 4.4 people per household.
The county's total land area is 2,844.8 square kilometers, with a population density of 310 people per square kilometer.
Nandi County is bordered to the North and East by Uasin Gishu, South East by Kericho, South by Kisumu, South West by Vihiga, and West by Kakamega.
Nandi has six sub-counties: Chesumei, Nandi Central, Nandi East, Nandi South, and Tinderet.
Nandi County Economy
Nandi County had an average Gross County Product at current prices of Ksh 218.8 billion in 2023, representing a 1.5% five-year average contribution to Gross Value Added.
Nandi County’s average contribution to agriculture, forestry, and fishing activities was 3.6%, while its contribution to manufacturing activities was 1.3%. Nandi County contributed 0.9% to service activities.
Nandi County had a Gross County Product per capita of Ksh 229,972 in 2023.
Nandi County Poverty Rates
The overall poverty rate in Nandi County in 2022 was 39.1%, representing an estimated 371,000 people living in poverty. The overall poverty rate in Kenya in the same year was 39.8%.
Nandi County had a hardcore poverty rate of 4.2%, with an estimated 40,000 people living in extreme poverty. By comparison, Kenya had a hardcore poverty rate of 7.1% in 2022.
The estimated food poverty rate of Nandi County in 2022 was 32.2%, with roughly 306,000 people living in food poverty. In Kenya, the food poverty rate in the same year was 31.7%.
The map below shows the distribution of poverty by Constituency in Nandi County in 2019: Aldai 36.9%, Chesumei 34.1%, Emgwen 36.5%, Mosop 41.8%, Nandi Hills 14.4%, and Tinderet 39.5%.
The mean monthly food and non-food expenditures in Nandi County were Ksh 3,434 and Ksh 2,879, respectively, in 2022. The share of expenditure on food was 62.1%, while the share of non-food expenditure was 37.9%.
The distribution of household food consumption in Nandi County by source showed that 71% was from purchase or stock, 25.7% from own production, and 3.3% from gifts.
The mean and median per adult equivalent expenditure in Nandi County in 2021 was Ksh 5,258 and Ksh 5,185, respectively.
Nandi County Demographics
Nandi County had a total population of 885,711 people in 2019, with 441,259 males, 444,430 females, and 22 intersex. Nandi had a median age of 18 years in 2019.
The table below shows the population distribution in Nandi County by sex and sub-county in 2019.
|
Sub county |
Male |
Female |
Inter sex |
Total |
|
Chesumei |
80,949 |
83,180 |
4 |
164,133 |
|
Nandi Central |
73,291 |
74,255 |
7 |
147,553 |
|
Nandi East |
59,899 |
59,271 |
3 |
119,173 |
|
Nandi North |
82,512 |
83,656 |
3 |
166,171 |
|
Nandi South |
85,718 |
87,029 |
3 |
172,750 |
|
Tinderet |
58,890 |
57,039 |
2 |
115,931 |
|
Total |
441,259 |
444,430 |
22 |
885,711 |
Marital Status
The percentage distribution of women aged 12 and above in Nandi County who were never married in 2019 was 44.5%, while those in monogamous unions were 47.5%. The share of women in polygamous marriages was 1.5%, while those who were widowed were 4.7%. The share of women in Nandi County who were divorced and separated in 2019 was 0.4% and 1.3%, respectively.
In men, the percentage distribution of those aged 12 and above who were never married in 2019 was 51.3%. The share of men in Nandi who were in monogamous marriages was 44.7%, while those in polygamous marriages were 1.4%. The widowed in the county were 0.8%, while the divorced and separated were 0.3% and 1.3%, respectively.
According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022, the median age at first marriage among women aged 25-49 was 21.8 years. Among men aged 30-54, the median age at first marriage was 25.6 years.
Polygyny in Nandi County
The distribution of married women aged 15-49 in Nandi County with one or more co-wives in 2022 was 4.8%. The share without a co-wife was 92.6%, with a single co-wife was 3.8%, and more than two co-wives was 1%.
Among married men aged 15-49 in Nandi County, the share with only one wife was 98%, while the share of men with more than two wives was 2%.
Marriage Registration
The % of currently married women aged 15-49 whose marriage is registered with civil authorities in Nandi County was 25.8% in 2022. The share whose current marriage was registered with a civil authority and who had a marriage certificate in 2022 was 24.8%.
Teenage Marriages
The proportion of married males aged 12-15 in Nandi County who were married in 2019 was 3.7%, while the proportion of married females of the same age group who were married was 3.9%. In addition, the proportion of married females aged 12-18 in Nandi County was 4.8%.
According to the KDHS 2022, the rate of teenage pregnancies in Nandi County, comprising teenage women aged 15-19 who have ever been pregnant, was 10.5%.
Total Fertility Rate
Nandi County had a Total Fertility Rate of 3.2 births per woman in 2019, a decrease of 35.1% from 4.9 births in 2009. By comparison, Kenya's TFR in 2019 was 3.4 births per woman in 2019, a reduction of 28.6% from 4.8 births in 2009.
In 2019, the total youth fertility rate in Nandi County was one birth per woman, similar to the national youth fertility rate of one birth per woman.
Nandi County's Crude Birth Rate was 24.7 births per 1,000 people in 2019, a 42.5% decrease from 43 births per 1,000 women in 2009. Overall, the national Crude Birth Rate was 27.9 births per 1,000 population in 2019, a 27.2% reduction from 38.4 births per 1,000 population in 2009.
Place of Birth and Notification Status
In 2019, 83% of recent births in Nandi County occurred in a health facility, while 16.8% occurred in a non-health facility. Nationally, the share of recent births in a health facility was 85.8%, with 14% occurring in a non-health facility.
The completeness of birth registration in Nandi County was 66.8% in 2023.
Place of Death and Notification Status
In 2019, 57% of deaths in Nandi County occurred in a health facility, while 42.8% 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 completeness of death registration in Nandi County was 32.8% in 2023.
In 2019, Nandi County's Crude Death Rate (CDR) was 12.8 deaths per 1,000 population, compared to 10.5% in Kenya.
Religious Affiliation
Most residents of Nandi County are Protestants 401,975, Catholics 216,901, and members of Evangelical Churches 153,342.
|
Catholic |
216,901 |
|
Protestant |
401,975 |
|
Evangelical Churches |
153,342 |
|
African Instituted Churches |
49,849 |
|
Orthodox |
14,936 |
|
Other Christians |
21,776 |
|
5,755 |
|
|
Hindu |
90 |
|
Traditionists |
630 |
|
Other Religion |
7,580 |
|
No religion Atheists |
10,002 |
Development in Nandi County
- The Rural Access Index (RAI) in Nandi County was 55%, representing the percentage of the population living within two kilometers of an all-weather road in 2019.
- Household access to electricity in Nandi County was 30.7% in 2019, up from 6.4% in 2009.
- Household access to improved sanitation in Nandi County was 86.7% in 2019, up from 72.7% in 2009.
- Household access to safe drinking water in Nandi County was 45.8% in 2019, up from 37.6% in 2009.
- In 2019, household access to piped water in Nandi County was 12.2%, down from 13.6% in 2009.
- Nandi had 98.2% of its public primary schools connected to electricity, ranking 13th highest in the country in 2019.
The share of the population in Nandi County owning mobile phones in 2019 was 42.5%. Among women, 73.9% owned any type of mobile phone in Nandi County in 2022, while 39.3% owned a smartphone.
Among men, 80.2% in Nandi owned any kind of mobile phone in 2022, while 42.9% 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 77% and 75.3%, respectively.
|
Nandi County |
||
|
Mobile Phone Ownership
|
42.50% |
Census 2019 |
|
77.05% |
KDHS 2022 |
|
|
% of the Population Making Mobile Money Transactions |
76.15% |
KDHS 2022 |
|
% of the Population with Mobile Money Accounts |
77.60% |
2021 FinAccess Survey |
|
% of the Population Using the Internet |
9.40% |
Census 2019 |
|
% of Population who have Ever Searched and Bought Goods Online |
2.00% |
Census 2019 |
|
% of Population Using Computer/Tablet/laptop |
6.70% |
Census 2019 |
|
% of the Population Using a Bank
|
31.80% |
KDHS 2022 |
|
19.80% |
2021 FinAccess Survey |
|
Nandi County Finance
In the financial year (FY) 2024/25, Nandi County approved a supplementary budget of Ksh10.19 billion, comprising Ksh 3.69 billion and Ksh 6.49 billion allocation for development and recurrent expenditures, respectively.
Other highlights in the FY 2024/2025 include:
- Equitable share – Ksh 7.35 billion
- Conditional grants and additional allocations – Ksh 486.98 million
- Own Source Revenue – Ksh 765.7 million
- Cash balances – Ksh 595 million
- Expenditure on salaries/personnel emoluments – Ksh 3,002,420,000.
- Expenditure on operations and maintenance – Ksh 3,647,400,000.
- Development expenditure – Ksh 3,335,120,000.
- Total expenditure – Ksh 9,984,940,000.
- Expenditure on Domestic travel – Ksh 272,200,000.
- Expenditure on Foreign travel – Ksh 59,100,000.
- Total expenditure on travel – Ksh 331,300,000.
- Nandi County outstanding pending bill – Ksh 985,100,000.
- The average MCA sitting allowance – Ksh 50,844.
HIV/AIDS in Nandi County
The prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Nandi County was 1.73% in 2025. The number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Nandi was 14,277, while the number of HIV-related deaths was 474.
|
HIV/AIDS in Nandi County – 2025 |
|
|
HIV Prevalence (%) |
1.73 |
|
People Living with HIV (PLHIV) - Total |
14,277 |
|
People Living with HIV (PLHIV) - Children |
636 |
|
People Living with HIV (PLHIV) - Adults |
13,640 |
|
New HIV Infections - Total |
308 |
|
New HIV Infections - Children |
63 |
|
New HIV Infections - Adults |
245 |
|
AIDS Related Deaths - Total |
474 |
|
AIDS Related Deaths - Children |
44 |
|
AIDS Related Deaths - Adults |
428 |
See Also