Kisumu County

Capital: Kisumu · County #42 of 47

Introduction

Kisumu County is located in Nyanza Province and is home to the third largest city in Kenya. It has a population of 1,290,000 in 2025, up from 1,155,574 in 2019. Kisumu County covers a land area of 2,085.4 and had a population density of 554 in 2019.

The total number of households in Kisumu was 300,745 in 2019, with an average household size of 3.8 individuals per household.

Kisumu is bordered to the East by Kericho County, to the South by Homa Bay County, to the South West by Lake Victoria, to the West by Siaya County, to the North West by Vihiga County, and to the north by Nandi County.

South by Homa Bay County, to the South West by Lake Victoria, to the West by Siaya County, to the North West by Vihiga County, and the north by Nandi County.

Kisumu County has 7 sub-counties: Kisumu East, Kisumu Central, Kisumu West, Seme, Muhoroni, Nyando, and Nyakach.

Kisumu County Economy

Kisumu County had a Gross County Product (GCP) of 343.3 billion in 2023, representing a 2.5% five-year average contribution to the Gross Value Added.

By sector, Kisumu County contributed 1.6% to agriculture, forestry, and fishing activities in 2023. The county contributed 3.5% to manufacturing activities and 2.6% to service activities in the same period.

Kisumu County had a Gross County Product per Capita of Ksh 274,947 in 2023.

This chart shows the Gross County Product of Kisumu County highlighted in red alongside Siaya, Nyamira, Kisii, Homa Bay, and Migori highlighted in sky blue.

Kisumu County Poverty Rates

According to the 2022 Kenya Continuous Household Survey, Kisumu County's overall headcount poverty rate was 39% compared to a national average of 39.8%. This represents 478,000 people who lived in poverty.

Kisumu County had a hardcore poverty rate of 3.1% compared to a national hardcore average of 7.1%. The total number of people in hardcore poverty was 39,000.

In 2022, the mean per adult equivalent consumption expenditure in Kisumu County was Ksh. 6,579, while the median was Ksh. 5,304.

The county's mean food expenditure was Ksh. 3,952, while the mean non-food expenditure was Ksh. 4,299. The share of income spent on food in Kisumu County was 55.6%, while the share spent on non-food items was 44.4%.

The overall food poverty rate in Kisumu County in 2022 was 31.5% compared to a national food poverty average of 31.7%.

The map below shows the poverty rates by constituency in Kisumu County. Kisumu East had a poverty rate of 31.7%, Kisumu Central 23.2%, Kisumu West 28.4%, Seme 28.9%, Muhoroni 11.2%, and Nyando 38%.

The map below shows the poverty rates by constituency in Kisumu County. Kisumu East had a poverty rate of 31.7%, Kisumu Central 23.2%, Kisumu West 28.4%, Seme 28.9%, Muhoroni 11.2%, and Nyando 38%

Kisumu County Demographics

Kisumu County had a population of 1,155,574 people in 2019, of whom 560,942 were male, 594,609 were female, and 23 were intersex. Kisumu had a median age of 18 years in 2019.

The population of Kisumu County by gender and sub-county
Sub county	Male	Female	Inter sex	Total
Kisumu East	108,304	112,689	4	220,997
Kisumu Central	84,155	89,989	5	174,145
Kisumu West	85,697	87,121	3	172,821
Seme	57,658	64,007	2	121,667
Muhoroni	76,770	77,345	1	154,116
Nyando	77,121	84,380	7	161,508
Nyakach	71,237	79,082	1	150,320

Marital Status

The distribution of unmarried women aged 12 and above in Kisumu County was 39.3% in 2019. On the other hand, 44.1% of the women in the county were married monogamously, while 4.6% were married polygamously. The distribution of widowed women was 10.1%, the divorced was 0.5%, and the separated were 1.4%.

Among men aged 12 and above, 49.2% were never married in 2019, 44.1% were married monogamously, and 3.9% were married polygamously. Widowed men in Kisumu County were 1.1%, while 0.3% were separated.^[1]

The proportion of married males aged 12-15 in Kisumu County was 2.8% in 2019. Among females of the same age group, 2.9% were married. The percentage of ever-married individuals aged 15-19 in Kisumu County was 2.9% in males and 8.6% in females.

Fertility Rates

Kisumu County had a Total Fertility Rate (TFR) of 3.1 in 2019, a drop from 5.0 in 2009. This represents a 37.5% drop in TFR between the two years. By comparison, Kenya had a TFR of 3.4 in 2019, a decline of 28.6% from a TFR of 4.8 in 2009.

This is a bar-graph showing the total fertility rate of Kisumu as 3.1. It is plotted alongside Migori, Homa Bay, Siaya, Kisii, and Nyamira.

The Total Fertility Rate of youth aged 15-24 in Kisumu County was 1.1 in 2019.

Kisumu Couty had a Crude Birth Rate (CBR) of 27.5 births per 1,000 population in 2019, a drop from 45.1 births in 2009 and 43.5 births in 1999. By comparison, Kenya had a Crude Birth Rate of 27.9 births per 1,000 population in 2019, 38.4 births in 2009, and 41.3 births in 1999.

The completeness of birth registration in Kisumu County was 93.9% in 2023.

Place of Death and Notification Status

In 2019, 63.4% of deaths in Kisumu County occurred in a health facility, while 36.1% occurred in the community. In Kenya, 59% of deaths in 2019 occurred in a health facility, while 40% did not occur in a health facility.

The completeness of death registration in Kisumu County was 51.6% in 2023.

Kisumu County had a Crude Death Rate (CDR) of 7 deaths per 1,000 population in 2019. Overall, Kenya had a Crude Death Rate of 10.5%.

Religion in Kisumu County

A total of 224,352 individuals in Kisumu County identified as Catholic, 319,349 as Protestants, 291,233 as Evangelical, 208,708 as from African Instituted Churches (AIC), 10,630 as Orthodox, and 43,791 as other Christian denominations.

Muslims were 17,241, while Hindus were 2,375. Those who said they were traditionalists were 3,619, while 15,901 were from other religions. Atheists and those with no religion were 6,653.^[5]

People with Disabilities

Kisumu County had a total of 39,929 people with disabilities in 2019, of whom 16,349 were male while 23,580 were female. The share of the population with a disability was 4.0%.

Of those with disabilities, 17,606 had a visual disability, 7,291 had a hearing disability, 16,196 had mobility, 8,190 had cognition, 4,288 had self-care, and 3,409 had disabilities related to communication.^[6]

Kisumu County Finance

In the financial year (FY) 2024/25, Kisumu County approved a supplementary budget of Ksh15.31 billion, comprising Ksh 5.43 billion and Ksh 9.89 billion allocation for development and recurrent expenditures, respectively.

Other highlights include:

Equitable share – Ksh 8.41 billion
Conditional grants and additional allocations – Ksh 977.23 million
Own Source Revenue – Ksh 2.46 billion
Cash balances – Ksh 669.46 million
Expenditure on salaries/personnel emoluments – Ksh 5,947,420,000.
Expenditure on operations and maintenance – Ksh 1,952,420,000.
Development expenditure – Ksh 1,567,990,000.
The total expenditure – Ksh 9,467,840,000.
Expenditure on Domestic travel – Ksh 413,170,000.
Expenditure on Foreign travel – Ksh 78,310,000.
Total expenditure on travel – Ksh 491,480,000.
Outstanding pending bill – Ksh 1,638,200,000.
The average MCA sitting allowance – Ksh 87,744.

Kisumu County Development

The Rural Access Index (RAI) in Kisumu County was 90%, representing the percentage of the population living within two kilometers of an all-weather road in 2019.
Household access to electricity in Kisumu County was 52.8% in 2019, up from 18.3% in 2009.
Household access to improved sanitation in Kisumu County was 85.3% in 2019, up from 56.2% in 2009.
Household access to safe drinking water in Kisumu County was 72.9% in 2019, up from 54.8% in 2009.
In 2019, household access to piped water in Kisumu County was 19.2%, down from 25.3% in 2009.
Kisumu had 100% of its public primary schools connected to electricity, the highest in the country in 2019.

The share of the population in Kisumu County owing mobile phones in 2019 was 49.4%.^[7] Among women, 71.7% owned any type of mobile phone in Kisumu County in 2022, while 32.1% owned a smartphone.

Among men, 77.9% in Kisumu owned any mobile phone in 2022, while 33.3% owned a smartphone. The percentage of men and women who had used a mobile phone for financial transactions in the year preceding the 2022 KDHS survey was 77.4% and 88.6%, respectively.^[8]

Financial inclusion and access to technology in Kisumu County
Mobile Phone Ownership in Kisumu County	49.4%	Census 2019
Mobile Phone Ownership in Kisumu County	74.8%	KDHS 2022
% of the Population in Kisumu Making Mobile Money Transactions	82%	KDHS 2022
% of the Population in Kisumu County with Mobile Money Accounts	86.5%	2021 FinAccess Survey
% of the Population in Kisumu County Using the Internet	23.9%	Census 2019
% of Population in Kisumu County who have Ever Searched and Bought Goods Online	4.9%	Census 2019
% of the Population in Kisumu County Using Computer/Tablet/Laptop	12.6%	Census 2019
% of the Population in Kisumu County Using a Bank	18.9	KDHS 2022
% of the Population in Kisumu County Using a Bank	25.6%	2021 FinAccess Survey

HIV/AIDS in Kisumu County

In 2025, the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Kisumu County was 10.96%. The number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Kisumu was 111,367, while the number of HIV-related deaths was 1,166.

HIV/AIDS summary statistics for Kisumu County
HIV/AIDS in Kisumu County – 2025
HIV Prevalence (%)	10.96
People Living with HIV (PLHIV) - Total	111,367
People Living with HIV (PLHIV) - Children	4,373
People Living with HIV (PLHIV) - Adults	106,994
New HIV Infections - Total	1,341
New HIV Infections - Children	225
New HIV Infections - Adults	1,116
AIDS Related Deaths - Total	1,166
AIDS Related Deaths - Children	107
AIDS Related Deaths - Adults	1,050