Busia County
Busia County
Background
Busia County is the fifth smallest county in Kenya and has a population of about half a million people according to the 2009 census. This makes it one of the most densely populated counties in the country with a population density of about 430 people living in each square kilometer. (10th in Kenya)
Majority of the population live in rural areas within the county with about 83% of all the households being rural according to the census 2009. This would mean that majority of the county’s population are wholly engaged in agriculture. However, Busia also happens to be one of the poorest counties in Kenya (10th poorest) with 68% of its’ people living below the poverty line. This means that 7 out of every 10 households are poor far below the country’s average of 5 poor households for every 10.
Health
• The doctor patient ratio in the county stands at 1:31, 000, this means that the county is below the national average of 1 doctor serving 25,000 people.
• One nurse serves just 2,054 people in Busia county which is still below the set standard by the World Health Organization of
• Only 31% of all the deliveries in Busia County take place in health facilities and qualified medical assistants attend to only 25% of all births.
• 37% of all visits to hospitals are of Malaria cases
Agriculture
• A study carried out by the Kenya Agricultural Research institute showed that 8 out of every 10 people in Busia County are food insecure despite the fact that over 80% of the people live in the rural areas which are predominantly agricultural areas.
• The main problems with agriculture in the county were stated as, poor farming methods, the use of uncertified seeds which greatly affects quality and quantity of crop produce, lack of soil enrichment methods.
• The rampant poverty has also meant that farmers cannot afford to buy farm inputs which get expensive each
Background
Busia County is the fifth smallest county in Kenya and has a population of about half a million people according to the 2009 census. This makes it one of the most densely populated counties in the country with a population density of about 430 people living in each square kilometer. (10th in Kenya)
Majority of the population live in rural areas within the county with about 83% of all the households being rural according to the census 2009. This would mean that majority of the county’s population are wholly engaged in agriculture. However, Busia also happens to be one of the poorest counties in Kenya (10th poorest) with 68% of its’ people living below the poverty line. This means that 7 out of every 10 households are poor far below the country’s average of 5 poor households for every 10.
Health
• The doctor patient ratio in the county stands at 1:31, 000, this means that the county is below the national average of 1 doctor serving 25,000 people.
• One nurse serves just 2,054 people in Busia county which is still below the set standard by the World Health Organization of
• Only 31% of all the deliveries in Busia County take place in health facilities and qualified medical assistants attend to only 25% of all births.
• 37% of all visits to hospitals are of Malaria cases
Agriculture
• A study carried out by the Kenya Agricultural Research institute showed that 8 out of every 10 people in Busia County are food insecure despite the fact that over 80% of the people live in the rural areas which are predominantly agricultural areas.
• The main problems with agriculture in the county were stated as, poor farming methods, the use of uncertified seeds which greatly affects quality and quantity of crop produce, lack of soil enrichment methods.
• The rampant poverty has also meant that farmers cannot afford to buy farm inputs which get expensive each