Drive From Kitui to Migwani

Today we will take a virtual drive from Kitui Town to Migwani Town and back through different routes. As always, we will discuss distances and directions in our travel with reference to Kitui Town, which is the administrative headquarters and largest urban centre in Kitui County.

Kitui to Kabati

The 19-kilometre section between Kitui town and Kabati market is pretty much as described in our transect drive from Nairobi to Kitui via Thika, and we will not repeat the details here. It’s the section between Kabati and Migwani that we are interested in.

Tulia

From Kabati one drives north along a murram road towards Tulia. Beginning at an area known as Katheka construction works are on-going to tarmac this road, which will be part of the highway from Kibwezi through Kitui to Usueni in Mwingi. The road will be a link between Kitui County and the counties of Meru and Isiolo.

The soils in this area are fairly fertile and have great potential for agriculture. The general area is not heavily populated.

Tulia is a fairly busy market centre located 30 kilometres north-east of Kitui. Amenities like market sheds and boreholes have been constructed by the County Government of Kitui.

Tulia Market in 2020

A street in Tulia, 2020

Kwa Mbelu

After Tulia Market one continues on the dusty road, which begins an upward climb as one climbs the Mutonguni Hills range. 4 kilometres from Tulia there is a major road junction at a place known as Kwa Mbelu. In a depression below the shopping centre is a major earth dam known as Muthamo. To the right of the junction the road leads to Muthale, which is 2 kilometres away. Here you find the Muthale Girls' School, one of Kenya's top-performing secondary schools. A kilometre down the road is found the Muthale Mission Hospital and Mortuary. 

About 11 kilometres from Kwa Mbelu, still on the Muthale road, is found a large shopping centre known as Kakumuti. The next shopping centre after that is known as Kyaani, and is located 15 kilometres from Kwa Mbelu. Here there is a junction with the road leading to the Kauma area. Also located in this area is Kyaani Girls School, a public secondary school sponsored by the Africa Inland Church (AIC). 

Finally, about 18 kilometres from Kwa Mbelu, one comes to Matinyani shopping centre, which is located 7 kilometres from Kitui town. 

Kwa Siku

To the left, at Kwa Mbelu, the road leads past Kwa Ndemwa shopping centre to a big shopping centre known as Kwa Siku, which is 3 kilometres away. Kwa Siku means ‘Siku’s Place’ in the Kamba language. It is not clear who Siku was but we will endeavour to find out.

At Kwa Siku there is a junction with the road leading towards Thitani Girls' School. The boundary between Kitui West and Mwingi West constituences is found near this shopping centre.

The area around Kwa Siku is fairly elevated, being at the top of the Mutonguni Hills. As you proceed to Migwani the road starts sloping downwards towards Migwani. About 2 kilometres from Old Migwani shopping centre, at an area known as Kwa Usuu, there is a junction with a road leading to Kamandio in the Miambani area of Kitui Central.

Old Migwani

42 kilometres from Kitui you come across a street of shops that make up what is known as Old Migwani Town. Some refer to the area as Kwa Katuli (Katuli’s Place). Said to have been established in the 1920s, this trading centre was initially an Indian bazaar. It is from here that the new Migwani town, which is 1 kilometre along the road, eventually developed.

After Old Migwani you cross a valley that is the origin of the Ikoo River (which runs through Kitui east) and reach the new Migwani Town.

Shops at Old Migwani

Migwani

Migwani is a small but busy town that is located in the northern part of Kitui County, somewhere between Kitui Town and Mwingi Town. The name Migwani is pronounced Mĩw’ani (miwuani). Mĩw’a is the Kamba word for ‘thorns’, and the name Migwani means 'among the thorns'. The origin of the name probably has to do with the thorny acacia tree known as kĩtoo in the Kamba language. The tree is found in plenty in the area.

Formerly part of the defunct Mwingi South Constituency, Migwani is now part of Mwingi West Constituency. The wider area around Migwani town forms Migwani Ward, which is one of the 40 electoral wards of Kitui County.

Migwani hosts numerous government offices, including a mobile law court, as well as a public hospital, a public market, small independent service stations, churches, and schools, notable among which is Migwani Boys, a public secondary school.

The area is predominantly inhabited by the Kamba people who engage in economic activities such as crop farming, goat-keeping, and businesses of various types. The most noticeable thing about the people here is the Kamba dialect that they speak. It has distinct differences in spelling and pronunciation of some words compared with the Kamba spoken in other parts of Kitui and in Machakos and Makueni.

Some words of the Kamba dialect of the Migwani area have the letter R, which the Kamba language does not use. This is probably due to influence from the people of the neighbouring Tharaka-Nithi County whom they interact with. Indeed, one of the electoral wards in the neighbouring Mwingi North Constituency goes by the name Tharaka.

The kĩtoo thorn tree found in the Migwani area

A street in Migwani Town

Migwani Market

Migwani Boys School

Migwani Livestock Yard

Nzeluni and Itoloni Junctions

The road from Migwani continues north towards the Thika-Mwingi-Garissa Highway. 2 kilometres from Migwani a road branches off to the right, leading to the Nzeluni area. Nearby is another junction, also to the right, that leads to the Itoloni area. Paramount Chief Kasina wa Ndoo is said to have hailed from that area.

Kyome Junction

5 kilometres from Migwani another road branches off to the right, leading to the Kyome area. At Kyome, 3 kilometres down this road, there is an Africa Inland Church (AIC) mission station, as well as the Kyome Boys' School, a public secondary school sponsored by the Africa Inland Church. In the same area is found Kyome Primary School, a public primary school also sponsored by the AIC.

The Kyome Boys' School in Migwani

A section of Kyome Boys' School 

A landscape view at Kyome Boys' School

The Kyome Primary School in Migwani

A Section of Kyome Primary School 

Kyome Primary School, Migwani

Thokoa

7 kilometres from Migwani you come upon Thokoa shopping centre, next to which is Thokoa Primary School, a public primary school sponsored by the Salvation Army.

A section of Thokoa shopping centre

Thokoa Primary School

An area of Thokoa, Migwani

Musuani

About 11 kilometres from Migwani you find a shopping centre known as Musuani. It’s the last major trading centre before reaching the Thika-Mwingi-Garissa Highway.

Mbondoni

The road from Migwani joins the Thika-Mwingi-Garissa Highway at an area known as Mbondoni, 34 kilometres from Migwani. To the right the road leads to Mwingi and, beyond that, Garissa. To the left it leads towards Thika, and this is the route we take.    

Nguutani

About 13 kilometres from Mbondoni is found a growing trading centre known as Nguutani. The wider area forms an electoral ward also known as Nguutani.

Kithyoko

Some 18 kilometres from Mbondoni one comes into Kithyoko Market, a busy trading centre, especially on market days like Tuesday. Just before getting to Kithyoko one crosses a deep river valley that marks the boundary of Kitui County with Machakos County.

The general area after Kithyoko is fairly flat and open. As one drives along the road the Thatha Hills (said to host some Buffalo) are clearly visible to the right.

A section of Kithyoko Market

The Thatha Hills as seen from Garissa Road

Kitui-Kibwezi Road Junction

About 36 kilometres from Mbondoni the Kitui-Kibwezi Road branches off to the left. Straight on the journey on the Thika-Mwingi-Garissa Highway is as described in our drive from Nairobi to Kitui via Thika. Similarly, the trip from the Kitui-Kibwezi Road junction (sometimes referred to as Kalandini) to Kitui is also as described in our transect drive from Nairobi to Kitui via Thika, and we will not repeat those details here. We hope you know this area better now.

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Drive to Kitui Again

Apart from the Machakos route, there is another way of accessing Kitui from Nairobi. This route goes via Thika Town, and is 187 kilometres long. From Thika, one travels along the Thika-Mwingi highway (Garissa Road).

The first significant point along this route is the Donyo Sabuk/Kilimambogo junction that leads to the twin towns of Kangundo and Tala. The junction, which branches off to the right, also leads to the 14 falls on the Athi River, and is located about 30 kilometres from Thika.

The area to the left of Garissa Road, at this point, is dominated by pineapple plantations. The next major point that one comes to is Ngoliba Market, found 13 kilometres from Donyo Sabuk. The little Centre is surrounded by vast plantations of pineapples and coffee.

5 kilometers from Ngoliba, one comes to the National Youth Service (NYS) Yatta Field Station. The institution's buildings are situated on both sides of the road.

11 kilometers from the NYS establishment, you come to the Kithimani Town junction. This is the junction to the road that leads to Makutano Market on the Machakos-Kitui highway. The road became famous when, in 2013, the Machakos County Government tarmacked the entire 33 kilometers in 3 months and at half the conventional cost.

Kithimani is an important government administrative centre. There is a police station and law courts, among other government offices. At the Kithimani junction you will be greeted by scores of eager hawkers selling fruits and vegetables. When driving, one has to be careful not to knock any of them down.

9 kilometers from Kithimani is a small town called Sofia. 7 kilometers from Sofia, and 66 kilometers from Kitui, is Matuu Town. The town has grown to be very big and busy in recent times. It is complete with schools, hotels, churches, service stations, retail shops, and government offices. It is difficult to imagine that at Kenya's independence, in 1963, there was only one shop here. Of note is the fact that the late former Commissioner of the Kenya Police, Philip Kilonzo, hailed from the Matuu area.

14 kilometers from Matuu is Kanyoonyoo Market. At this shopping centre is found the junction of the road to Masinga and Embu, which branches off to the left. There is not much in the surrounding area except vast acres of uninhabited land used for ranching.

4 kilometers from Kanyoonyoo, one comes to the junction with the road leading to Kitui and Kibwezi. The road branches off to the right, towards Kitui which is 48 kilometres away. This junction, although in the general area of Kanyoonyoo, is known as Kalandini. Kalandini is an old name for the place, which many of the younger people may not be familiar with. In the '70s and '80s, before the road to Kitui was tarmacked, there was a police barrier near this junction. This barrier is probably what was changed to be the road block we have there today.

There is no human settlement and commercial activity at all at this junction. The scenic view of the countryside, however, makes the drive worthwhile. From Kalandini one goes past the two market centres of Kathiani and Katutu before coming to Kabati, a rapidly growing town located 19 kilometers north of Kitui. Kabati is a government administrative centre that has a market. From Kabati there is an untarmacked road that branches off to Migwani Town, eventually reaching Mwingi Town.

From Kabati, the next milestone is the Syongila junction, found 3 kilometers from Kitui Town. The Syongila junction is the point at which the Kitui-Kibwezi Road meets the Machakos-Kitui Road. Not far from Syongila, to the left of the Kitui-Kibwezi Road, is the Matinyani shopping centre.

From the Syongila junction you then drive into Kitui Town.

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