Eastern Province (Kenya)
| Eastern Province Mkoa wa Mashariki | |
|---|---|
| Former Province | |
 Location of the Former Province in Kenya. | |
| Coordinates: 0°0′N 38°0′E / 0.000°N 38.000°ECoordinates: 0°0′N 38°0′E / 0.000°N 38.000°E | |
| Country |
 Kenya |
| No. of Counties: | 8 |
| Capital | Embu |
| Area | |
| • Total | 140,698.6 km2 (54,324.0 sq mi) |
| Population (2009) | |
| • Total | 5,668,123 [1] |
| Time zone | EAT (UTC+3) |
The Eastern Province (Swahili: Mashariki) of Kenya was one of 8 Provinces of Kenya. Its northern boundary ran along with that of Ethiopia; the North Eastern Province and Coast Province lay to the east and south; and the remainder of Kenya's provinces, including Central Province, ran along its western border. The provincial capital was Embu.
Overview
On 16 July 2009, the province was sub-divided into 3 Sub-Provinces namely lower eastern with Machakos as headquarters, central eastern with Meru as headquarters, and upper eastern with Marsabit as headquarters; however those changes never took effect due to the political wrangles in the Kenyan coalition government at the time. The sub-division of provinces were carried out in all seven Provinces of Kenya, excluding Nairobi. As of March 2013 after the Kenyan general election, 2013, the Eastern Province was subdivided into 8 counties namely:
| Code | County | Former Province | Area (km2) | Population Census 2009 | Capital |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Marsabit | Eastern | 66,923.1 | 291,166 | Marsabit |
| 11 | Isiolo | Eastern | 25,336.1 | 143,294 | Isiolo |
| 12 | Meru | Eastern | 6,930 | 1,356,301 | Meru |
| 13 | Tharaka-Nithi | Eastern | 2,409.5 | 365,330 | Chuka |
| 14 | Embu | Eastern | 2,555.9 | 516,212 | Embu |
| 15 | Kitui | Eastern | 24,385.1 | 1,012,709 | Kitui |
| 16 | Machakos | Eastern | 5,952.9 | 1,098,584 | Machakos |
| 17 | Makueni | Eastern | 8,008.9 | 884,527 | Wote |
| Totals | 140,698.6 | 5,668,123 | - |
The province was principally inhabited by the Meru, Kamba and Embu and several pastoralist communities. In 1979 its population was 2.7 million; in 1999, 4,631,779 (according to the 1999 census) and in 2009 the province would have had a population of 5,668,123.[2] In terms of area, it was the second largest province at (140,698.6 km²) in Kenya.
Geography
Eastern Province of Kenya includes the Chalbi Desert, Mount Kenya, and the eastern half of Lake Turkana. The climate in the region is arid to semi-arid. Its most important permanent river is Ewaso Ng'iro.