Murang'a leads counties in best performance as Kang'ata rated most popular governor - report
Kilifi County recorded the most significant improvement, with Kiambu, Lamu, Samburu, and Mombasa also showing notable progress.
Murang'a County has emerged as the best-performing county in Kenya, according to a recent County Index released by InfoTrak on Tuesday.
The county earned a score of 52 per cent, with Governor Irungu Kang'ata ranked as the top governor in the country with a 68 per cent approval rating.
More To Read
The County Index, which surveyed performance across various counties in Kenya, places Homa Bay County in second place, with a score of 51 per cent.
Trans Nzoia and Kirinyaga counties tied for third with a score of 48 per cent. Other counties in the top five include Kisii, Nyeri, and Kisumu, all scoring 47 per cent.
Uasin Gishu, Elgeyo Marakwet, Makueni, Bungoma, Kiambu, and Lamu followed closely behind with an 8th-place ranking, all receiving a score of 46 per cent.
In the governor rankings, Irungu Kang'ata from Murang'a tops the list of the most popular county bosses, followed by George Natembeya of Trans Nzoia with a score of 64 per cent.
Gladys Wanga of Homa Bay ranks third with a 61 per cent approval rating.
Different parties
Interestingly, all the top three governors are in their first term, representing different political parties: Kang'ata from the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), Wanga from the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), and Natembeya from the Democratic Action Party of Kenya (DAP-K).
Other notable governors in the top 10 include Anyang' Nyong'o from Kisumu (59 per cent), Mutula Kilonzo Jr from Kitui (57 per cent), Elgeyo-Marakwet's Wisley Rotich (57 per cent), Simba Arati from Kisii County (55 per cent), Kilifi's Gideon Mungaro (54 per cent), Mutahi Kahiga from Nyeri (54 per cent), and Kimani Wamatangi from Kiambu at 53 per cent.
"The best-performing county utilizes live dashboards to track various sectors to ensure no inefficiency," said Angela Ambitho, CEO of InfoTrak.
While Murang'a topped the rankings, the overall performance of counties showed a slight decline.
The survey indicated that Murang'a's ranking dropped from 70 per cent in 2023 to 65 per cent in 2024, marking the second consecutive year of decline.
On the other hand, Kilifi County recorded the most significant improvement, with Kiambu, Lamu, Samburu, and Mombasa also showing notable progress.
Interviews were conducted from October to December 2024, covering all 47 counties, with a total sample size of 39,795 people. The data was gathered through phone interviews and analysed using SPSS software.
A questionnaire was used, with a rating scale from 1 to 10. A score of 1 meant very poor, and 10 meant excellent. The average score for each key performance area (KPI) was calculated to create the Index for that specific area. The overall performance of the counties was then determined by averaging the scores of all the KPIs.
Governors, however, highlighted their influence over the allocation and use of public funds as a critical factor contributing to their rankings.
Factors like transparency, accountability, the fulfilment of campaign promises, initiation of development projects, and accessibility to constituents were all seen as key contributors to the performance of both counties and governors.
Top Stories Today
