Laikipia County is one of the 47 counties of the Republic of Kenya and in Laikipia County Kenya; wildlife is big business. Its motto adopted August 9, 2014, is “An oasis of opportunity” His Excellency Governor Joshua W. Irungu was elected as the first Governor of Laikipia on March 4, 2013.

Maasai playing some really good cricket in Laikipia

Laikipia means treeless plain in the Maasai language

Laikipia County is one of the 14 counties within the Rift Valley region and one of the 47 counties in the Republic of Kenya. Laikipia County borders Samburu County to the North, Isiolo County to the North East, Meru County to the East, Nyeri County to the South East, Nyandarua County and Nakuru County to the South West and Baringo County to the West.

Harvesting honey in Laikipia County Kenya

Laikipia is a vast plain nestled in the shadow of Mount Kenya; Laikipia is home to the “Big Five” mammals – elephant, lion, leopard, water buffalo, and rhino – and to the planet’s largest population of endangered species such as Grevy’s Zebra and the Reticulated Giraffe.

Laikipia County Kenya biodiversity is stunning. Laikipia has over 500 species of the medicinal plant, aloe, stinging nettle, and other medicinal plants and essential oils, along with several hundred native bee species.

Laikipia has multiple ethnic communities; however, the Kikuyus and Maasai communities form the largest portion of its residents.

Due to its location along the equator and nearness to Mount Kenya, the county experiences a cool temperate climate. For the most part, the residents in North Laikipia County are pastoralists who move from one area to another in search of water and pasture.

The lives and livelihoods of Laikipia County’s pastoralists, ranchers, smallholder farmers, and tourism operators are inextricably intertwined with the health and well-being of the area’s abundant natural resources.

Facts About Animals of Africa