Kitengela is a municipality in the Kajiado County of Kenya, located 50 Kilometres south of the capital

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...

, forming part of the greater Metropolitan Area. Kitengela begun as The Kitengela group ranch, made up of 18,292 ha and 214 registered members which was subdivided in 1988 in efforts by the Government to encourage private land ownership in pastoral systems, with the aim of intensifying and commercializing livestock production. After subdivision of the group ranch, land fragmentation and sales have continued at a steady and escalating pace. The human population within the Kitengela area has more than doubled in the last 10 years, from 6548 in 1989 to 17,347 in 1999 to 58,167 in 2009. There is also a town named Kitengela in the area. Close to

Nairobi National Park Nairobi National Park is a national park in Kenya that was established in 1946 about south of Nairobi. It is fenced on three sides, whereas the open southern boundary allows migrating wildlife to move between the park and the adjacent Kitengel ...

is also the Kitengela Game Conservation Area populated with buffalo,

Masai giraffe The Masai giraffe (''Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi'' or ''Giraffa tippelskirchi''), also spelled Maasai giraffe, and sometimes called Kilimanjaro giraffe, is a subspecies or species of giraffe. It is native to East Africa. The Masai gira ...

, eastern black rhino,

Common eland The common eland (''Taurotragus oryx''), also known as the southern eland or eland antelope, is a savannah and plains antelope found in East and Southern Africa. It is a species of the family Bovidae and genus '' Taurotragus''. An adult male is ...

, impala,

Grant's Grant's is a blended Scotch whisky, produced by the company William Grant & Sons in Scotland. History In 1886, William Grant started working in the distillery business as a bookkeeper. In 1898, Pattison's, the largest Scotch whisky blende ...

and

Thomson's gazelle Thomson's gazelle (''Eudorcas thomsonii'') is one of the best known species of gazelles. It is named after explorer Joseph Thomson and is sometimes referred to as a "tommie". It is considered by some to be a subspecies of the red-fronted gazelle a ...

, common

waterbuck The waterbuck (''Kobus ellipsiprymnus'') is a large antelope found widely in sub-Saharan Africa. It is placed in the genus '' Kobus'' of the family Bovidae. It was first described by Irish naturalist William Ogilby in 1833. Its 13 subspecies ar ...

and

Defassa waterbuck The waterbuck (''Kobus ellipsiprymnus'') is a large antelope found widely in sub-Saharan Africa. It is placed in the genus '' Kobus'' of the family Bovidae. It was first described by Irish naturalist William Ogilby in 1833. Its 13 subspecies ...

hippopotamus The hippopotamus ( ; : hippopotamuses or hippopotami; ''Hippopotamus amphibius''), also called the hippo, common hippopotamus, or river hippopotamus, is a large semiaquatic mammal native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of only two extan ...

common warthog The common warthog (''Phacochoerus africanus'') is a wild member of the pig family (Suidae) found in grassland, savanna, and woodland in sub-Saharan Africa. In the past, it was commonly treated as a subspecies of ''P. aethiopicus'', but today t ...

olive baboon The olive baboon (''Papio anubis''), also called the Anubis baboon, is a member of the family Cercopithecidae Old World monkeys. The species is the most wide-ranging of all baboons, being native to 25 countries throughout Africa, extending fr ...

monkey Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...

s and the attendant

carnivore A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other sof ...

s –

lion The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...

spotted hyena The spotted hyena (''Crocuta crocuta''), also known as the laughing hyena, is a hyena species, currently classed as the sole extant member of the genus ''Crocuta'', native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is listed as being of least concern by the IUC ...

cheetah The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...

, side-striped and

black-backed jackal The black-backed jackal (''Lupulella mesomelas),'' also called the silver-backed jackal, is a medium-sized canine native to eastern and southern Africa. These regions are separated by roughly 900 kilometers. One region includes the southe ...

s, African golden wolves, bat-eared fox and smaller carnivores. The diversity of species is decreasing in the Kitengela area adjacent to the Nairobi National Park, where land-uses not compatible with wildlife are increasing.

Kitengela town

Kitengela is a town in

Kajiado County Kajiado County is a county in the former Rift Valley Province of Kenya. As of 2019, Kajiado county spanned an area of 21,292.7 km2, with a recorded population of 1,117,840. The county borders Nairobi and to its south it borders the Tanzan ...

just south of Nairobi and is part of the Nairobi Metropolitan Area. Kitengela is one of the fastest growing urban areas of Kenya according to census data of 2019, having tripled in population inflows since 2009. It has an urban population of 154,436 people. Kitengela is close to Athi River town in Machakos County in the former Eastern Province, while Kitengela belongs to Kajiado County in the former

Rift Valley Province Rift Valley Province ( sw, Mkoa wa Bonde la Ufa) of Kenya, bordering Uganda, was one of Kenya's eight provinces, before the Kenyan general election, 2013. Rift Valley Province was the largest and one of the most economically important provinces i ...

. Kitengela is growing quickly and is expanding with a huge influx of middle class Nairobians who have built lovely gated communities and businesses in an unprecedented construction boom, thanks to the affordable land compared to Nairobi city as well as availability of 5 cement companies and growing infrastructural amenities. Residents describe Kitengela as "having the best of both worlds," given its close proximity to Nairobi but easy-going slow paced rural feel, as well as the friendly, collaborative nature of the resident population. Kitengela is famous for ''"nyama choma"'' (roast meat) – a Kenyan delicacy. The town has a wide variety of restaurants that serve this delicacy. Some of the most famous ones include the famous Yukos, Enkare, Arusha Meat Den and numerous more. Kitengela has a wide variety of financial institutions and saccos (savings and credit cooperatives) that have flooded the town to finance the construction boom as well as cater to the soaring middle class population. It also has seen a boom in posh hotels, clubs and other entertainment facilities. In recent times Kitengela has developed a reputation for new, unique cutting-edge entertainment facilities such as Pavillion XV Lounge, Halcyon Lounge, and 034, a 5 star club nestled in an airplane have sprung up in the town - a first for Kenya. As Kitengela's middle class population has boomed, so has its wide variety of high end schools and universities to cater to the children of the middle classes. Some of the schools include Kitengela International Schools, Acacia Crest, Chuna Preparatory, Orchard Schools, Nova Pioneer Kitengela and numerous more. Some of the universities and colleges include KCA University Kitengela campus, Kitengela Institute of Management Studies, KAG East University, East African University, RAF International University among others. Kitengela's gated communities for the middle classes include Chuna, Milimani, Royal Gates, New Valley, Muigai Prestige, New World Gardens, Safaricom 1 & 2 estates, Police Sacco Estate, EPZ estate, Fountain View, Riverside, Upper Valley, Kenpipe Gardens, Acacia and many more. These estates have seen an unprecedented boom due to the fact that most of them are controlled, not allowing unsightly flats or small businesses/kiosks within their gated walls. Chuna Estate, Royal Finesse and Royal Gates are considered among the best organised of them but many more are coming up each year. With the construction and completion of Isinya pipeline road, as well as the ongoing construction of the Mlolongo to Waiyaki Way expressway, as well as Konza City Metropolis nearby, Kitengela is poised to experience even more growth and development. Kitengela is served by Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Athi River SGR station as well as a future commuter rail station that is currently under construction that will connect commuters to Nairobi CBD.

References

{{First and second-level administrative divisions of Kenya Populated places in Kajiado County Landforms of Kenya Plains of Africa

Kitengela town

See also

References