Kendu Bay is a bay and town in

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. ...

. The area is the part of Rachuonyo North District in

Homa Bay County Homa Bay County is a county in the former Nyanza Province of Kenya. Its capital and largest town is Homa Bay. The county has a population of 1,131,950 (2019 census) and an area of 3,154.7 km2. Lake Victoria is a major source of livelihood ...

Overview

It is located on the shores of

Lake Victoria Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropics, tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface are ...

along Katito-Homa-Bay road. It is the headquarters of the district. Kisumu, the largest urban centre and city in Kenya's western region, is located 40 kilometres north of Kendu Bay, but the route to Kisumu, which goes via

Ahero Ahero is a town close to the city of Kisumu, the third largest city in Kenya and the second largest city, after Kampala, in the Lake Victoria Basin. It is an agricultural town in Kenya that is part of Kisumu County. The town has a retail market s ...

, is much longer as it circumvents

Winam Gulf Winam Gulf is a significant extension of northeastern Lake Victoria into western Kenya. Formerly known as Kavirondo Gulf, Nyanza Gulf, and Lake Nyanza Gulf, it is a shallow inlet and is connected to the main lake by Rusinga Channel ( wide), which ...

in between kisumu- Ahero- Katito- Kendu Bay is 70 km from Kisumu city. Kendu Bay is also linked by a road to

Homa Bay Homa Bay is a town (and eponymous bay) on the south shore of Winam Gulf of Lake Victoria, in western Kenya. It lies near Mount Homa (in the Luo language ''Got Marahuma'' or ''God Uma'' famous mountain" and Ruma National Park, the latter note ...

, located 30 kilometres southwest. Kendu Bay forms a town council with a population of 29,638 (1999 census). Kendu Bay town council has four wards: Gendia/Awach, Gumba/Jieri, Rambira and Simbi/Kogembo. All of them are located within

Karachuonyo Constituency Karachuonyo Constituency is an electoral constituency in Kenya. It is one of eight constituencies in Homa Bay County Homa Bay County is a county in the former Nyanza Province of Kenya. Its capital and largest town is Homa Bay. The county has ...

. Kendu Bay is also headquarters of East Karachuonyo division of Rachuonyo District. The area is the birthplace of Barack Obama Sr., the father of U.S. President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

, and his parents

Hussein Onyango Obama The family of Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, is a prominent American family active in law, education, activism and politics. Obama's immediate family circle was the first family of the United States from 2009 to 2017 dur ...

and Habiba Akumu Nyanjoga. The senior Obama was raised in Alego. For many years Kendu Bay was known as the entertainment capital of Nyanza, with its famed 'Kendu Show', which attracted musicians and bands from all over Kenya. However, the show has waned and disappeared over the years. Today the show-ground is a mere relic of its illustrious past, as is the Old pier that used to be an important port of call for steamers and ships from as far as Uganda and Tanzania. The area residents proud themselves of the historical " Lake Simbi" situated few kilometers from Kendu Bay Town off Homabay-Katito road. It is an alkaline lake and the villagers believe that the waters are curative to any skin diseases among other interesting stories revolving around its formation. "Lake Simbi is a tiny Crater Lake measuring about one kilometre in radius. Both Lake Simbi and adjacent Odango sites support a substantial bird population that includes flamingos, little grebes, little egrets and Egyptian geese, making it a haven for bird watchers." http://www.kws.go.ke/content/lake-simbi-national-sanctuary Woman with blue top at posho mill Kendu Bay.jpg, Posho mill at the bay File:InstagramCapture 9d1228ee-37e4-4288-85ea-86cb436913aa.jpg, Boats by the Bay File:InstagramCapture 455ca54d-5097-47d0-b3d2-7834258a4caa.jpg, Fish market at Kendu Bay with buckets of Silver Cryprinid(Omena) ready for sale

References

{{Coord, 0, 22, S, 34, 39, E, display=title, region:KE_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki Homa Bay County Populated places in Nyanza Province Populated places on Lake Victoria