By Nicanor Ndiege
Kenya’s economic narrative is undergoing a quiet revolution—one not led by the traditional political epicentres but by bold, visionary counties embracing productivity over politics.
Murang’a County, long in the shadow of its more politically prominent neighbours—Kiambu and Nyeri—has redefined itself as a rising economic powerhouse and a major breadbasket in the country.
Equity Group Holdings Chief Executive Officer, Dr. James Mwangi, in a recent investment conference in Murang’a, told President William Ruto that Murang’a was well served with tarmacked roads and that the only thing the region needs is investment in value addition for the various food crops the county produces.
“Last time I stayed in the Four Seasons Hotel in New York, I paid $12 for a sachet of 10 grams of the tea bag I produced. As an accountant, I computed $12 by sh130, the exchange rate. It came to sh150,000, and for me as a farmer, I only got sh75.
Your Excellency, if there is no other case, it is the power of value addition for Murang’a farmers; this is the only way we can motivate them,” he said.
Similarly, Nyanza enjoys rich natural resources, talent, and heritage. Yet, for a long time, the region has remained hamstrung by politics, raw resource exports, and infrastructure gaps.
Comparatively, Murang’a’s most potent strategy has been its conscious shift from politics to policy. Speaking at the investment conference, Murang’a Governor Irungu Kang’ata revealed that the county had several investment opportunities.
“Your Excellency, we are here for this conference for four reasons. We want to attract industries that can come and invest, and through that, we will be able to create jobs, raise revenue and create backwards linkages for our farmers.
In the Murang’a industrial park, we have 1,300 acres of land at a place near Makenji. The County Assembly has approved the master plan. In that master plan, 500 acres have been donated to EPZ, and we are happy they are currently building infrastructure.
The balance of 800 acres of land has been zoned for manufacturing and other uses. We have also given national government agencies pieces of land inside this park,” said the Governor.
If Nyanza is to mirror Murang’a, it must ring-fence development from politics. Murang’a has made an important leap by focusing on processing what it produces.
In his address, Dr. James Mwangi noted that because Murang’a is the leading avocado producer in Kenya, it would be economically viable for the county to construct factories for avocado processing.
“But Your Excellency, I would fail if I didn’t remind you that also Murang’a is the number one avocado producer in Kenya. We can also construct factories for avocado processing so that we may stop selling fruits and instead sell oil. And if you can help us, we can sell cosmetics. So we go up to sh150,000 instead of sh75.
Your Excellency, we are also number two in macadamia production in Kenya, and we are number two in coffee. Your Excellency, there is no other country that can give you that kind of scope. It is only Murang’a,” he said, adding that through the government’s support of such initiatives, the county can drive economic activities of the larger Central region.
This is in stark contrast to Nyanza, which continues to export fish and even gold in raw form—losing billions in value.
Lake Victoria’s fish is packaged in Europe and sold back to Kenyan supermarkets, while Migori’s gold leaves unprocessed. As Industrialisation CS Rebecca Miano rightly asked, “Why sell raw cane when we could power an ethanol revolution from Kisumu?”
To change this, Nyanza counties should pass “Local Processing Mandates” that require a percentage of produce—whether fish, cotton, or sugarcane—to be processed within the county before export.
Murang’a’s 1,300-acre industrial park is not just an idea—it’s operational, with paved roads and power supply already in place. This has attracted over $50 million in private investment.
Compare this with Nyanza, where only 18% of Kisumu’s rural roads are paved, according to the 2023 KNBS report.
The sugar belt from Muhoroni to Londiani remains critically underserved. While the Kisumu Special Economic Zone is a step forward, it must be fast-tracked and integrated with regional transport corridors like the port of Kisumu and the Uganda border.
But where will the money come from? Murang’a’s alliance with Equity Bank is a case study in harnessing homegrown capital for grassroots development. Through agro-financing and SME credit lines, local industries are flourishing.
Nyanza’s diaspora remitted KSh1.1 billion in 2023, reports CBK, yet little of that supports structured economic development. County governments must tap this vast resource pool through diaspora bonds, local investment forums, and guaranteed return schemes tied to industrial parks and EPZs.
Nyanza has every ingredient to become Kenya’s next economic frontier: fertile land, a vast lake economy, mineral wealth, and an educated youth base. What it needs is prudent governance and discipline to follow Murang’a’s model—depoliticise, industrialise, and localise.
Let Nyanza build county-level economic councils. Let it zone and activate industrial parks. Let it pass value-addition laws. Let it tap the diaspora not just for remittances but for reinvestment.
As Governor Kang’ata aptly put it: “Economics beats politics when citizens demand results.”
The question now for Nyanza is not if it can change, but when it will choose to.
The moment to pivot is now—not in the heat of rallies, but in the hum of factories; not in rhetoric, but in revenue.
Edited by Sandra Blessing
