… The PS’s remarks came against the backdrop of intensified efforts by UDA to expand its grassroots network in Western Kenya, a region where the party is seeking to increase its support ahead of the 2027 elections. …
… Malala, for instance, has undertaken political mobilisation in Western Kenya and in August publicly backed Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s presidential bid, saying he would support Sifuna and rally Luhya youth behind him. …
President William Ruto has turned his attention to Western Kenya in an increasingly aggressive campaign to reclaim political grassroots support ahead of the 2027 General Election, as Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s Linda Mwananchi movement gains traction across the region. …
President William Ruto has turned his attention to Western Kenya in an increasingly aggressive campaign to reclaim political grassroots support ahead of the 2027 General Election, as Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna’s Linda Mwananchi movement gains traction across the region. …
… Ruto was responding to criticism of his housing programme, with his remarks appearing directed at Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, who has previously questioned the suitability of high-rise affordable housing for communities in Western Kenya where residents keep chickens. …
Fear is spreading across parts of Western Kenya as a succession of killings, armed robberies and brutal assaults turns once-quiet neighbourhoods into danger zones. …
… The climate outlook indicates that rainfall will begin as early as September in parts of western Kenya and the Rift Valley while most other regions are expected to receive the onset of the October-December short rains between the second and fourth weeks of October. …
Kenya Kwanza leaders warned against escalating political violence and tribalism ahead of the 2027 General Election, urging rival camps to allow political meetings to proceed without disruption and calling for political competition to be centred on ideas and development.
Kenya Kwanza leaders warned against escalating political violence and tribalism ahead of the 2027 General Election, urging rival camps to allow political meetings to proceed without disruption and calling for political competition to be centred on ideas and development.
A specialised eye hospital has opened in Kisumu, offering optical, general, and surgical eye-care services to patients in Nyanza, Western Kenya and the wider East African region. Governor Prof Anyang' Nyong'o said the facility would help address the region's need for specialised eye care and allow patients to access treatment closer to home instead of travelling to Nairobi.
Bumula MP Jack Wamboka and Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya cautioned Uganda against any attempt to have its citizens participate in Kenya's 2027 elections, with Wamboka calling on President Museveni to discourage Ugandans from being used in the poll. Wamboka linked the warning to the government's recent crackdown on Burundian nationals, alleging that some foreigners were targeted for refusing to acquire Kenyan identification documents and support President Ruto's re-election bid.
The government has identified 18 counties as high-risk areas ahead of heavy rains and flooding expected from October, with a multi-agency team already working in Baringo County on evacuation and preparation efforts.
Heavy rains are expected to begin in September and continue through February as El Niño conditions set in, with the government urging riparian residents to relocate to safer areas. The Ministry of Health is launching a mitigation plan in 18 high-risk counties.
Leaders from Western Kenya met in Kisumu to declare support for President William Ruto's re-election in 2027, citing the presidency as their immediate political priority. More than 22 elected and nominated leaders attended the meeting to assess the political landscape and advance the region's development interests.
Cooperatives Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya brought together more than twenty-two elected and nominated leaders from Western Kenya in Kisumu to discuss the region's political situation and development priorities, with focus on cooperative sector issues including coffee and SACCOs ahead of the 2027 General Election.
President William Ruto's allies in Western Kenya, led by Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka, have defended the IEBC against opposition claims that it could rig the 2027 General Election. The leaders urged politicians to respect the electoral commission's constitutional independence and accused the opposition of undermining confidence in the body.
A supremacy battle between Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa and Cooperative Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya is escalating and threatening to weaken the broad-based government in Western Kenya. The rivalry, combined with Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna's rising influence in the region, has complicated President William Ruto's political position in the voter-rich Western region.
The anti-narcotics unit recovered bhang worth more than Sh10 million along the Mai Mahiu-Narok Road in Naivasha and arrested three suspects who were unloading and repackaging it. The Nakuru county police commander said the drugs were destined for Nairobi from Western Kenya and that the road is a major corridor used by drug peddlers to ferry bhang to Nairobi and Mombasa.
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has backed Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna's presidential ambitions for 2027, saying age should not prevent young leaders from seeking the top seat and describing Sifuna as one of the serious contenders. Gachagua said he has no problem either deputising Sifuna or Sifuna deputising him, and pushed back against COTU Secretary General Francis Atwoli's suggestion that the 44-year-old Sifuna is too young to run.
More than 1,000 households in Busia County have been connected to electricity through a partnership between the county government and the Rural Electrification and Renewable Energy Corporation (REREC) under a Matching Fund Programme, where county governments and REREC contribute funds on a shilling-for-shilling basis. Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi said Busia County contributed KSh154 million between the 2023/2024 and 2025/2026 financial years and urged other counties to adopt the model to accelerate rural electrification.
Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi announced that the ruling UDA-led coalition is developing a new broad-based coalition framework and joint manifesto to support President William Ruto's re-election bid in August 2027. A committee with representatives from UDA and ODM will craft the framework, which will set out the coalition's agenda for the five years following the 2027 election.
Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has called on opposition leaders to cease criticising the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), arguing that the electoral agency's independence must be respected and that attacks on it could undermine public confidence in the August 2027 General Election. Mudavadi defended the current IEBC leadership under Chairperson Erastus Ethekon and cited recent by-elections, including the Ol Kalou poll, as evidence of the commission's ability to conduct credible elections.
Water Cabinet Secretary Eric Muga has criticized the slow implementation of the Sh220 million Shitoli water project in Ikolomani, Kakamega County, which is seven months behind schedule with only 11 per cent of works completed against a 77 per cent time lapse. Muga questioned the Lake Victoria North Water Works Development Agency and contractor Geo-Data Systems, saying the explanations for delay were unconvincing and that the project, expected to serve 40,000 residents, was expected to be completed in November.
Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has accused opposition leaders of attacking the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to undermine confidence in the 2027 election, arguing the attacks aim to discredit the election outcome before voting takes place. Mudavadi defended the commission's independence, citing recent by-elections as evidence of its capacity to deliver free and fair polls, and warned opposition leaders against attempting to dictate how the IEBC conducts its work.
Stakeholders and residents in Western Kenya have called on Parliament to amend anti-corruption laws to allow the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission to retain a percentage of funds and assets it recovers from corruption, arguing this would strengthen investigations and speed asset recovery.
Parliament's Public Investments Committee is investigating payments by national secondary schools to the Kenya Secondary School Heads Association (KESHA), with some schools paying as much as Sh6 million. The committee wants to establish whether KESHA is legally entitled to receive public funds and whether its activities are subject to audit by the Auditor-General.
Kenya is stepping up universal infant screening for sickle cell disease, with an estimated 250,000 people living with the condition nationwide and about 14,000 children born with it each year. Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale said the government is expanding screening, strengthening comprehensive care, and training health workers to support early diagnosis and treatment.
An aviation workers' strike in its second day left numerous passengers stranded at airports across Kenya, including at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, where some overnight passengers lacked accommodation and many flights were cancelled or rescheduled.
Youth disrupted the opening of a UDA party office in Budalangi, Busia County, on Monday, forcing police to intervene. The incident exposed growing political differences within the ruling party, with Cooperatives and MSMEs Principal Secretary Susan Mang'eni accusing Kenya's Ambassador to Uganda Ababu Namwamba of working with a rival political group while claiming government support.
The Lake Basin Development Authority and partners have established a state-of-the-art hatchery to produce fingerlings and restock Lake Victoria as fish stocks struggle to keep pace with demand in Nyanza and Western Kenya.
President William Ruto is deploying an aggressive campaign in Western Kenya to reclaim grassroots support as Senator Edwin Sifuna's Linda Mwananchi movement gains traction in the region. Observers view the president's tactics, including deploying foot soldiers with cash, as signs of desperation ahead of the 2027 General Election.
President William Ruto is intensifying efforts to reclaim political support in Western Kenya ahead of the 2027 General Election, deploying operatives with cash to counter Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna's Linda Mwananchi movement, which has been gaining traction in the region. Political observers characterize the president's tactics as a sign of desperation over potential losses in a strategically important electoral zone.
President Ruto mocked criticism of his Affordable Housing Programme, dismissing arguments that high-rise buildings are unsuitable for communities with livestock. He questioned why chickens could not be transported using lifts and noted that 1.1 million young people are employed in the scheme.
Killings, armed robberies and brutal assaults are spreading across parts of Western Kenya, including Bungoma, Kakamega and Busia, forcing residents, traders and boda boda operators to change their daily routines as criminals strike people on their way home from work, school or businesses.
The Kenya Meteorological Service Authority warns that about 20 counties could begin receiving enhanced rainfall as early as September, with western Kenya and the Rift Valley expected to see rainfall first, while most other regions anticipate the October-December short rains between mid-to-late October.