Nakuru - City of Kenya

Nakuru, the provincial capital of Kenya's Rift Valley province, with roughly 300,000 inhabitants, and currently the fourth largest urban centre in the country, lies about 1850 m above sea level. It is also the capital of Nakuru District.

The history of Nakuru can perhaps be traced to the prehistoric period due to the archeological discoveries located about 8 km from the Central Business District at the Hyrax Hill reserve.Nakuru is Kenya's 4th largest city. However, the modern town, as with many others in Kenya, derives its name from the Maasai speaking people of Kenya. Nakuru was established by the British as part of the White highlands during the colonial era and it has continued growing into a cosmopolitan town. It received township status in 1904 and became municipality in 1952.

In 2006, the then MP, Mirugi Kariuki was killed in a plane crash in Marsabit on his way to a peace meeting. The crash also killed five other members of parliament. The ensuing by-election was contested and won by his son, William Kariuki Mirugi of the Narc-Kenya party.

At the age of 27, Hon. William Kariuki Mirugi became one of the youngest members of parliament to represent Nakuru Town Constituency. He was however defeated by Lee Kinyanjui during the 2007 general elections beating his close rival Mike Brawan. The 2007 post-election violence also took a toll on the town, with dozens of buildings burnt to the ground by various factions.

Nakuru is a sister city of East Orange, New Jersey .

Nakuru is also an important educational center. It is the home of Egerton University, a large public university, and Kabarak University, a private university associated with former President Moi's business and religious interests. The Rift Valley Institute of Technology is also based here, as is the Kenya Industrial Training Institute . The Kenya Institute of Management has a college branch in Nakuru. Nakuru is now becoming a center of academic with centers like Kenya Institute of Biomedical Sciences and Technology being opened in the Town.

Nakuru is also a home to various private colleges and privately owned secondary schools. Famous private secondary schools include Melvin Jones Lions Academy, Greensteds and Shah Lalji Nagpar Academy. Students in these schools follow the British curriculum and education up till A-levels is currently being offered.

Tourism is an important economic activity in Nakuru. The town, and the region, are endowed with vast resources that make tourism a key income source. Nakuru is home to Lake Nakuru, one of the Rift Valley soda lakes, which forms part of the Lake Nakuru National Park. The park is famous for the vast numbers of flamingoes that can be seen foraging in the shallow lake. The park also has many wild animals that can be seen during a safari. Apart from the animals numerous other sites of interest are accessible from Nakuru.

The Rift Valley Sports Club lies in the centre of the town. A number of sporting activities are hosted at this club and popular among them is cricket. The local Indian community can be found at cricket fixtures thoroughout the year. The town hosts an annual rugby festival dubbed "The Great Rift 10-a-side" which features teams from across the East Africa region.

Hyrax Hill Prehistoric Site, discovered by the Leakeys in 1926, is considered a major Neolithic and Iron Age site. The adjoining museum features finds from various nearby excavations.