Msambweni (meaning "land of Msambwe") in Swahili) is a small fishing town and

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

Kwale County Kwale County is a county in the former Coast Province of Kenya. Its capital is Kwale, although Ukunda is the largest town. Kwale County has an estimated population of 866,820. Kwale is mainly an inland county, but has a coastline south of ...

of southeastern Kenya, formerly in Kwale District of

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 ...

. The origin of the name, Msambwe (plural Misambwe) refers to a hardy and wild fruits () tree indigenous to the area. A few remnants of the Msambwe trees are still existing at Mkunguni Beach, Sawa Sawa Village. By road, Msambweni is south of

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital status in 1907. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

and northeast of Lunga Lunga on the

Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is bordered by Uganda to the northwest; Kenya to the northeast; the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to t ...

n border. As of 2009, the town had a population of 11,985 people.

Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

is the primary source of income, although

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

palm, buxa coloring,See

Bixa orellana ''Bixa orellana'', also known as achiote, is a shrub or small tree native to Central America. ''Bixa orellana'' is grown in many countries worldwide. The plant is best known as the source of annatto, a natural orange-red condiment (also calle ...

cashew nuts and

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

s are produced for trade. Because of its

reef A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral, or similar relatively stable material lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic component, abiotic (non-living) processes such as deposition (geol ...

and extensive beaches, the

snorkeling Snorkeling (American and British English spelling differences#Doubled in British English, British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of human swimming, swimming face down on or through a body of water while breathing ...

industry is gaining in popularity in Msambweni, and holiday cottages and hotels have sprung up in the area, such as the Msambweni Beach House. The town is noted for its

leprosarium A leper colony, also known by #Names, many other names, is an isolated community for the quarantining and treatment of lepers, people suffering from leprosy. ''Mycobacterium leprae, M. leprae'', the bacterium responsible for leprosy, is believ ...

and contains the Msambweni District Hospital. The Koromojo Dam is immediately north of the town.

Geography

By road, Msambweni is south of

, southeast of

Kwale Kwale is a small town in Mombasa and the capital of Kwale County, Kenya. It is located at ; 30 km southwest of Mombasa and 15 km inland. The town had an urban population of 10,063 (2019 census). It is next to the Shimba Hills Nation ...

, and northeast of Lunga Lunga on the

n border. It lies along the A14 road (Ukunda- Ramisi Road) between the villages of Ukunda and

Shimoni Shimoni is a port village and tourist destination in Lunga Lunga Constituency, Kwale County. It is in southeastern Kenya near the border with Tanzania and directly across from Wasini Island. General Information This small town is known for i ...

. Msambweni forms a constituency that starts from the

Mwachema River The Mwachema River is a river of southeastern Kenya. It flows into the Indian Ocean at Diani Beach. The Indian Ocean Beach Club hotel in the Moorish style Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were ...

at the border of Tiwi and

Diani Beach Diani Beach is a beach on the Indian Ocean coast of Kenya. It is located south of Mombasa, in Kwale County. Tourism The beach is about long, from the Kongo river in the north to Galu beach in the south (the southern point of reference is an ...

to the north, and down to Ramisi River towards the border of Kenya and Tanzania to the south. The area's scenery is characterized by its beaches, rocky outcrops and low cliff tops and is relatively unspoiled. At one end of the beach is a "rocky headland of fossilized

coral Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...

, which is a jumble of cracks, caves and chimneys that make an ideal roost for

bats Bats are flying mammals of the order Chiroptera (). With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most birds, flying with their very long spread-out ...

" and there are

baobab ''Adansonia'' is a genus of medium-to-large deciduous trees known as baobabs ( or ). The eight species of ''Adansonia'' are native to Africa, Australia, and Madagascar but have also been introduced to other regions of the world, including Barb ...

trees in the vicinity. There is a

channel at Msambweni and

aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material, consisting of permeability (Earth sciences), permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The s ...

which is about south of the Tiwi aquifer. The reef, which stretches from Msambweni to

Malindi Malindi is a town on Malindi Bay at the mouth of the Sabaki River, lying on the Indian Ocean coast of Kenya. It is 120 kilometres northeast of Mombasa. The population of Malindi was 119,859 as of the 2019 census. It is the largest urban centr ...

in the north, is one of the world's largest continuous

fringing reef A fringing reef is one of the three main types of coral reef. It is distinguished from the other main types, barrier reefs and atolls, in that it has either an entirely shallow backreef zone (lagoon) or none at all. If a fringing reef grows direc ...

. At the northern end of Msambweni Bay is Chale Island, a

headland A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, Jo ...

rather than an

island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

, which is known as a sacred ''kaya'' (worshipping place). Many of the locals are superstitious and believe in

witchcraft Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...

and spirits ().

Bedrock In geology, bedrock is solid rock that lies under loose material ( regolith) within the crust of Earth or another terrestrial planet. Definition Bedrock is the solid rock that underlies looser surface material. An exposed portion of bed ...

in the area was likely formed by Mazeras

Sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

s. Msambweni has an average rainfall of 55.18 inches a year.

Politics

Msambweni Central forms a

with an elected Member of Parliament. As of 2001 the Msambweni Constituency had an area of with a population of 211,011 people. By 2009 it had a population of 288,393 people. Kassim Mwamzandi was MP from 1988–1997. The MP for Msambweni was Suleiman Dori Ramadhan until his death on 9 March 2020. He assumed office in 2013 and was re-elected in 2017. A by-election which was held towards the end of December 2020 was marginally won by independent candidate Feisal Bader.

Economy

Msambweni grew from a small village into a bustling little town. Fishing is important to the local community of Msambweni and is the primary source of income. The area is mainly Muslim and inhabited by

Digo people The Digo (''Wadigo'' in Swahili language, Swahili) are a Bantu peoples, Bantu ethnic and linguistic group based near the Indian Ocean coast between Mombasa in southern Kenya and northern Tanga, Tanzania, Tanga in Tanzania. In 1994 the Digo popula ...

s. The Kwake District Development Plan 2002–2008 attempted to improve fish landing sites and beach access for fisherman on the coast of Msambweni.

Coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

palm is grown, as are cashew nuts,

s and buxa coloring.

Maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava, manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America, from Brazil, Paraguay and parts of the Andes. Although ...

cowpea The cowpea (''Vigna unguiculata'') is an annual herbaceous legume from the genus '' Vigna''. Its tolerance for sandy soil and low rainfall have made it an important crop in the semiarid regions across Africa and Asia. It requires very few inpu ...

s and

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

are grown for domestic consumption. There are numerous stalls along the main road in the town selling fruit and vegetables.

Silica sand Sand casting, also known as sand molded casting, is a metal casting process characterized by using sand—known as ''casting sand''—as the mold (manufacturing), mold material. The term "sand casting" can also refer to an object produced via th ...

is mined at Msambweni and transported to

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 ...

to make bottle glass.

Beekeeping Beekeeping (or apiculture, from ) is the maintenance of bee colonies, commonly in artificial beehives. Honey bees in the genus '' Apis'' are the most commonly kept species but other honey producing bees such as '' Melipona'' stingless bees are ...

and

seaweed farming Seaweed farming or kelp farming is the practice of aquaculture, cultivating and harvesting seaweed. In its simplest form farmers gather from natural beds, while at the other extreme farmers fully control the crop's biological life cycle, life c ...

are also local occupation and its commercialization in the area has been supported by ACT! Kenya with financial assistance from the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. A result of its reef, the tourist industry is taking off in Msambweni attracting snorkelers. Holiday cottages and hotels have sprung up. Club Green Oasis caters mainly to German tourists. Although supplied with electricity, in the 1990s the government expressed concerns about access to an ample clean water supply in the division.

Landmarks

Msambweni is noted for its

, and contains the Msambweni Level 5 Hospital, which is reportedly one of the best hospitals on the coast, and Kari Medical Clinic, Vingujini Primary School, and Msambweni Secondary School. The Msambweni Campus of Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC), formerly the Matuga Medical Training College in Matuga, is located next to the hospital. It was established in 1977 and shifted location to Msambweni in August 2006. It trains students in the Health Sciences, and since 2005 they have offered a three and half-year pre-service diploma course in Community Health Nursing. On a clifftop is the Msambweni Beach House, set in 28 acres with a stretch of private beach. Although predominantly

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

, the town has an

interdenominational Ecumenism ( ; alternatively spelled oecumenism)also called interdenominationalism, or ecumenicalismis the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships ...

church. Immediately to the north of Msambweni is the Koromojo Dam. and between Msambweni and Kwale is the

Shimba Hills National Reserve The Shimba Hills National Reserve is a small National Reserve in the former Coast Province of Kenya, 33 km from Mombasa and 15 km from the coast. The reserve is an area of coastal rainforest, woodland and grassland. It is an important ...

. There is a

marine reserve A marine reserve is a type of marine protected area (MPA). An MPA is a section of the ocean where a government has placed limits on human activity. A marine reserve is a marine protected area in which removing or destroying natural or cultural ...

at Shimoni beyond Funzi Island to the south.

References

Footnotes Endnotes {{Good article Populated places in Coast Province