Kitengela

Kitengela is a municipality in Kajiado County, Kenya, about 34 kilometres south of Nairobi and part of the greater Nairobi Metropolitan Area, close to Athi River town. The name was first used around 1940 for land held by Chief Ole Mutunkei and his son Simeon Sinkeet, later the 18,292 hectare Kitengela group ranch, which was subdivided in 1988 to encourage private land ownership. Land fragmentation and sales have continued since, and the population grew from 6,548 in 1989 to 58,167 in 2009. The 2019 census counted 154,436 people, making it one of the fastest growing urban areas in Kenya, driven by middle-class Nairobi residents investing in gated communities. Beside Nairobi National Park lies the Kitengela Game Conservation Area, home to buffalo, giraffe, black rhino and lion.