Kakamega County

Kakamega Forest | Ikhonga Murwi (Weeping Stone Of Ilesi) |

Kakamega County is a county in the Western Province of Kenya.

Its capital town is Kakamega.

It has a population of 1,660,651 according to the 2009 census and occupies an area of 1,395 km².

It is lies 52 kilometres north of Kisumu.

The larger county has seven divisions: Kabras, Shinyalu, Navakholo, Lurambi, Ikolomani, Ileho and Municipality divisions.

The county lies at an altitude of 1,250 metres to 2,000 metres.

The average temperature in the county is 22.5 0C most of the year.

Local Inhabitants are mostly the Luhya tribe, whose economic activity is farming and fishing.

It serves as the headquarters of Kenya's largest sugar producing company in Kenya, Mumias Sugar.

Kakamega was the scene of the Kakamega gold rush in the early 1930s, fueled partly by the reports of the geologist Albert Ernest Kitson.

Kakamega was also a major filming location in the box office blockbuster "Ernest Saves Christmas" starring Jim Varney.