The Eastern Province () of

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

was one of 8

Provinces of Kenya The provinces of Kenya were replaced by a system of counties in 2013, after the 2010 constitution was effected. History Before the new constitution of Kenya that came into force on 27 August 2010, Kenya was divided into eight provinces (se ...

. Its northern boundary ran along with that of

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

; the North Eastern Province and

Coast Province The Coast Province () was one of Kenya's eight provinces prior to 2010. It covered the entire country's coastline on the Indian Ocean. Its capital city was Mombasa. It was inhabited by the Mijikenda and Swahili peoples, among others. The provin ...

lay to the east and south; and the remainder of Kenya's provinces, including Central Province, ran along its western border. The provincial capital was

Embu Embu may refer to: Places ; in Brazil * Embu das Artes * Embu-Guaçu ; in Kenya * Embu, Kenya * Embu County Other

*Embu people of Kenya *Embu language, the Bantu language spoken by them {{Disamb, geo ...

Overview

On 16 July 2009, the province was sub-divided into three: Lower Eastern with Machakos as headquarters, Central Eastern with

Embu Embu may refer to: Places ; in Brazil * Embu das Artes * Embu-Guaçu ; in Kenya * Embu, Kenya * Embu County Other

*Embu people of Kenya *Embu language, the Bantu language spoken by them {{Disamb, geo ...

as headquarters, and Upper Eastern with Marsabit as headquarters; however, those changes never took effect due to the political wrangles in the Kenyan

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

at the time. The sub-division of provinces was carried out in seven

provinces of Kenya The provinces of Kenya were replaced by a system of counties in 2013, after the 2010 constitution was effected. History Before the new constitution of Kenya that came into force on 27 August 2010, Kenya was divided into eight provinces (se ...

, excluding

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

. As of March 2013 after the

Kenyan general election, 2013 General elections were held in Kenya on 4 March 2013. Voters elected the President, members of the National Assembly and newly formed Senate. Also elected include governors, county women representatives and members of county assembly, (MCAs). T ...

, the Eastern Province was subdivided into eight counties, namely: The province was principally inhabited by the Meru,

Kamba Kamba may refer to: *Kamba African Rainforest Experiences, a collection of eco-luxury lodges in the Republic of Congo *Kamba people of Kenya *Bena-Kamba, a community in the Democratic Republic of the Congo *Khampa, also spelled Kamba, Tibetan peop ...

Embu Embu may refer to: Places ; in Brazil * Embu das Artes * Embu-Guaçu ; in Kenya * Embu, Kenya * Embu County Other

*Embu people of Kenya *Embu language, the Bantu language spoken by them {{Disamb, geo ...

, and several pastoralist communities. In 1979, its population was 2.7 million; in 1999, 4,631,779 (according to the 1999 census) and in 2009 the province would have had a population of 5,668,123. In terms of area, it was the second largest province at (140,698.6 km²) in Kenya.

Geography

Eastern Province of Kenya includes the Chalbi Desert,

Mount Kenya Mount Kenya (Meru people, Meru: ''Kĩrĩmaara,'' Kikuyu people, Kikuyu: ''Kĩrĩnyaga'', Kamba language, Kamba: ''Ki nyaa'', Embu language, Embu: ''Kĩ nyaga'') is an extinct volcano in Kenya and the Highest mountain peaks of Africa, second-highe ...

, and the eastern half of

Lake Turkana Lake Turkana () is a saline lake in the Kenyan Rift Valley, in northern Kenya, with its far northern end crossing into Ethiopia. It is the world's largest permanent desert lake and the world's largest alkaline lake. By volume it is the world ...

. The climate in the region is arid to semi-arid. Its most important permanent river is Ewaso Ng'iro.

Villages and settlements

References

{{Authority control Provinces of Kenya Former provinces 2013 disestablishments in Kenya

Overview

Geography

Villages and settlements

See also

References