Ugunja town is a market town in western
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
, located in Ugunja Division,
Siaya County. It has a population of approximately 17,000 and is rapidly growing. Ugunja Division had a population of 79,113 according to the 1999 Kenyan census. Most of the inhabitants in Ugunja are
Luos.
Ugunja is located on the
Kisumu
Kisumu ( ) is the List of cities and towns in Kenya by population, third-largest city in Kenya after the capital, Nairobi, and the coastal city of Mombasa (census 2019). It is the third-largest city after Kampala and Mwanza in the Lake Victor ...
-
Busia highway, which links Kenya and
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
. Ugunja town is 72 km north of the nearest city,
Kisumu
Kisumu ( ) is the List of cities and towns in Kenya by population, third-largest city in Kenya after the capital, Nairobi, and the coastal city of Mombasa (census 2019). It is the third-largest city after Kampala and Mwanza in the Lake Victor ...
, which sits on the shores of
Lake Victoria
Lake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. With a surface area of approximately , Lake Victoria is Africa's largest lake by area, the world's largest tropical lake, and the world's second-largest fresh water lake by surface area after ...
. The
equator
The equator is a circle of latitude, about in circumference, that divides Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can als ...
is 40 km south of Ugunja town.
Rural residents of Ugunja mainly depend on agriculture as their main source of food and income. The area receives two rainy seasons a year: March to June and September to December. The farming is mostly subsistence based, and major crops grown are sorghum, potatoes, cassava, beans, and maize. When farmers have surplus crops, they sell in local markets for income. In the past some farmers have grown cotton and coffee as cash crops, but due to market unreliability most farmers now prefer to grow food crops for their own families and local markets.
Ugunja town serves as a trading center for the community around it and the nearby urban centers. In the town most people work in small businesses and offices. There are a number of retail shops, bars, hotels, cafes, and residential houses. Also in the area are a bank, a post office, transport service companies, supermarkets, chemists, three health centers, dispensaries, and some private clinics. Ugunja town is also the location of th
Ugunja Community Resource Centre
External links
About Ugunja and DistrictAll About Ugunja
Siaya County
Populated places in Nyanza Province
{{NyanzaKE-geo-stub