The Senate has voted in support of Nakuru bid for city status. In a highly charged session, the Senate adopted a report by the Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations Committee, paving the way for Nakuru to become the fourth city in Kenya. The other cities are Nairobi, Kisumu and Mombasa.
38 senators voted in support of the elevation, whereas two rejected it during the Senate proceedings. County Senator Susan Kihika, who had previously opposed the elevation, changed her stand and supported the move. Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui followed the proceedings virtually and welcomed the move. The report will now be presented to President Uhuru Kenyatta to give Nakuru a city charter.
“I am very happy. I always knew Nakuru was ripe to become a city. I laud the senators for granting Nakuru city status. This will unlock the region’s untapped economic fortunes,” said Governor, Kinyanjui.
Study visit of the town.
The journey towards Nakuru attaining city status began in 2017 when Governor Kinyanjui took office. He made the push for Nakuru to become a city one of his flagship projects and embarked on an ambitious upgrade of infrastructure in the town.
Before the approval, the Senate committee met with the county executive, municipal board and also conducted a study visit of the town. The committee also held a total of seven sittings. According to the Urban Areas and Cities Act, 2011, for an urban area to be classified as a city, it should demonstrate capacity to generate sufficient revenue to sustain its operations and have key infrastructure.
Senate Devolution and Intergovernmental Relations Committee revealed that Nakuru County local revenue generated in the past three financial years demonstrated the capacity and potential of Nakuru in its own revenue generation.The county has also surpassed the population requirement of having a threshold of 250,000 people. The townโs population is currently is 367,183.
