Kerugoya is the largest town in

Kirinyaga County Kirinyaga County is a county in the former Central Province of Kenya, located south of Mount Kenya. Its capital is Kutus and its largest town is Wanguru. In 2019, the county had a population of 610,411 people and has an area of 1,478.1 ...

, located 10 kilometres east of

Karatina Karatina is a town in Nyeri County, Kenya which hosts a municipal council and serves as the headquarters of Mathira East subcounty. Karatina municipality had a total population of 6,852, all classified as urban in the 1999 census It has six elect ...

and 40 kilometres west of

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 ...

. It is situated in the former Kirinyaga district. Travel directions by road from

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 ...

is through Thika Road past Thika, Kenol and Makuyu (along the Thika Road). The road leads through Makutano until Sagana town, where a road branches off the East towards Kagio town up to

Kirinyaga University Kirinyaga University is a public university situated in Kutus Kerugoya in Kirinyaga County, Kenya. History The university has its roots in the ''Kirinyaga Technical Institute''. In 2012 it became a constituent college of the Jomo Kenyatta Univers ...

branching North towards the town. You can also drive through the Plains of Mwea branching east at Makutano, famous for the largest rice irrigation scheme in Eastern Africa, passing numerous communes inhabited by the Kikuyu, majority of whom practise Subsistence farming. Kerugoya town mostly serves as an urban area to the inhabitants of Kangaita, Kimunye, Kagumo and Karia.

Name

The word is Kerugoya comes from Kikuyu words 'Kiri-guoya' which means 'The fearful (Bush)'. The place was formerly covered with thick bushes and when the whites arrived in the villages, they named the so-called 'Kithaka kiri guoya' (Gichugu Dialect). Hence the modern name Kerugoya.

Administration

Kerugoya forms a local authority together with another township,

Kutus Kutus is a town in Kirinyaga County, Kenya, serving as the county's administrative headquarters. Geography Kutus, forming part of the Kerugoya/Kutus municipality, is the county headquarters of Kirinyaga. The municipality, which also includes th ...

. It is known as ''Kerugoya/Kutus municipality''. The municipality has a population of 39,441, of whom 14,056 are classified as urban (1999 census ). The municipality has six wards: Kerugoya Central, Kerugoya North, Kerugoya South, Kutus South, Kutus Central and Nduini. Most of these wards belong to

Kerugoya/Kutus Constituency Kirinyaga Central Constituency, formerly known as Kerugoya/Kutus Constituency is an electoral constituency in Kenya. It is one of four constituencies in Kirinyaga County Kirinyaga County is a county in the former Central Province of Kenya, lo ...

. Kerugoya was also headquarters of the former ''Central division'' of Kirinyaga District.

Education

A famous deaf school Kerugoya School for the Deaf is based in Kerugoya Town. Others are, Kirinyaga Township Primary School, Kerugoya Boys High School, Kerugoya Girls High School, Facing MT. Kenya High. others are Kerugoya Good shepherd academy kerugoya St. Joseph Academy and many more. In 2011,

Kenya Certificate of Primary Education The Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) was a certificate awarded to students after completing the approved eight-year course in primary education in Kenya. The examination was supervised by the Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) ...

Kirinyaga county mean mark was number 1 out of 47in the whole country. The Kirinyaga University, formally known as ''Kirinyaga Technical Institute'' as well as ''Kirinyaga University College'', is situated in Kerugoya. It received the charter to operate as an independent university in October 2016 by Kenyan president

Uhuru Kenyatta Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta ( born 26 October 1961) is a Kenyan politician who served as the fourth president of Kenya from 2013 to 2022. The son of Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya's first president, he previously served as Prime Minister of Kenya, Deputy Pri ...

among 8 other universities.

Economy

Kerugoya is the biggest town in Kirinyaga County in terms of area, population, business capacity and amenities. It is associated as an economic hub of the region given the big arable farms held by local farmers: Tea, coffee, macadamia and others food stuff are among the crops grown in the upper area, as the region is most suitable for farming. To support agricultural and dairy farming there are several agro-vet business and officers from the Ministry of Agriculture. There are various banks (among them Equity bank, CBA,

Cooperative Bank Cooperative banking is retail and commercial banking organized on a cooperative basis. Cooperative banking institutions take deposits and lend money in most parts of the world. Cooperative banking, as discussed here, includes retail banking carr ...

Family Bank Family Bank Limited (FBL), commonly known as Family Bank, is a commercial bank in Kenya, the largest economy in the East African Community. It is licensed by the Central Bank of Kenya, the central bank and national banking regulator. Overview ...

Barclays Bank Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...

Sidian Bank Sidian Bank, formerly known as K-Rep Bank, is a commercial bank in Kenya, licensed by the Central Bank of Kenya, the national banking regulator. Location The headquarters of Sidian Bank are located at K-Rep Centre, on Wood Avenue, in Kilimani ...

, Bingwa Sacco, Kirinyaga Farmers Sacco, Muhigia Sacco and FEP Bank). This shows good performance economically. Milk production in Kirinyaga county is on the rise with many farmers favoring dairy farming for its handsome rewards. Kirima Slopes Co-operative Society buys milk from farmers and then sells it to Brookside Dairy. In the year 2014, the cooperative society which is a community-based initiative received Ksh.89 million as payment for milk sold to Brookside company.

Transport

When traveling from Nairobi, the capital city, Kerugoya town is easily accessible by use of public service vehicle (

Matatu In Kenya, matatu or matatus (known as mathree in Sheng) are privately owned minibuses used as share taxis. Often decorated, many ''matatu'' feature portraits of famous people or slogans and sayings. Likewise, the music they play is also aimed ...

). it costs an average of 250 to 300 KESRegistration centres by electoral area and constituency and it typically takes about two hours of travel at a legal speed limit of 80 km/h. Mostly these vehicles are located in

Tea Room A teahouse or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel, especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment that only serve ...

and Nyamakima bus stages. The widely used Saccos are as follows: KUKENA, Supreme Shuttle, 2NK or Private vehicle etc. Kerugoya has multiple gas stations such as Total, Kobil, and National Oil.

References

External links

{{First and second-level administrative divisions of Kenya Kirinyaga County Populated places in Central Province (Kenya) County capitals in Kenya