Background Of Marigat Catholic Mission

Marigat Catholic Mission Dispensary was initiated in 1982 by the organization of Franciscan Missionaries of St. Joseph Sisters after needs assessment revealed that medical services were greatly required in Marigat area. The facility is located in Yatoi Sub-Location, Marigat Location, Marigat Division, Baringo South Sub-County, Baringo County, in Rift Valley Province, Kenya. When the facility was initiated, community members travelled for long distances to access medical services, therefore leading to unnecessary deaths. The initial structure composed of a small room to store drugs and vaccines. Outreach clinic was used to reach communities in interior areas. By then, the farthest area reached was about 80 kilometers. Currently, the dispensary runs outreach clinics in Baringo North and Baringo South Sub-Counties every Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Static clinic is run from Monday through Friday at the facility. The furthest outreach is 52 km while the nearest is 12 km. The areas reached are Biretwonin, Ng’aratuko, Salabani, Lororo/Parkaren, Kailer, Mbechot, Lesamburbur, Sambaka, Chemorongion and Kirim.

Marigat District Profile

Marigat District was curved from Baringo Central District. It is 1,677.5 square kilometers and has a population of 79, 629 and 15,545 households. It is on the northern part of Rift Valley province. It borders Laikipia District to the East, East Pokot to the North, in the North West it borders Baringo North, Baringo Central to the West and Koibatek to the South. The district consists of Marigat, Mochongoi and Mukutani Divisions. The area is inhabited by three tribes; the Tugen and the Ilchamus. Small populations of the Turkana live near Marigat Township. They got displaced from Turkana County owing to cattle rustling in the 1960s. The people are mainly pastoralists and subsistence peasant farmers. The district lies at an average altitude of 1,000m above the sea level. There are three lakes found in the area namely Lake Baringo, Lake Bogoria and Lake 1994. Lake Baringo, one of the two fresh water lakes in the Rift Valley has a surface area of about 130 km² and an elevation of about 970 m. It is located in an arid zone and it is an important source of water (unlike other Rift Valley lakes that are alkaline saline) for domestic use and livestock production. The area experiences low and erratic annual rainfall which varies between 500mm and 750 mm in most parts of the area with an average rainfall of 600mm annually, characteristic of semi – arid conditions. It has high temperatures ranging between 25-390C for most of the year. Annual evaporation rates vary between 2000mm and 2800 mm, which are much higher than the annual rainfall. Its soils are predominantly loam and clay with silt-impregnated deposits. Settlement patterns in the district are influenced by climatic conditions and economic opportunities found in the area. Marigat Division is more densely populated due to the existence of irrigation schemes and urban activities in Marigat town. The general population density within the program area is 28 persons per km2. Majority of the district’s population is youthful with 61.5% below 20 years. The age bracket (0-4years) constitutes 21% of the population, an indication of a high birth rate. The district’s population projections was based on a growth rate of 2.65% per annum. The main land use in the district is livestock rearing, semi-nomadic livestock keeping is the main stay of the population, though there is an increasing interest in crop production to augment the household food requirements.