Butere

Butere is a town in Kakamega County in western Kenya, in what was formerly the Western Province. At the 2019 Kenya National Census its urban population was recorded as 154,100. Until 2010 the town served as the capital of the former Butere/Mumias District. It is linked by road to Mumias to the north and to Kisumu to the southeast, and a branch railway line from Kisumu ends there, although passenger services had not resumed by 2025. The name comes from the Abatere sub-clan, one of the main clans of the area, whose members were the primary inhabitants until the colonial administration chose Butere as an administrative base. The local economy long depended on sugarcane, and many farmers have turned to maize, soybeans, small-scale cattle rearing, beekeeping and fish farming.