Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi has embarked on an elaborate plan that aims at helping Thika Town achieve city status.
In an interview with Nation on Wednesday, March 1, Wamatangi indicated that the first step in the plan is already done after the ratification of a resolution by the County Executive Committee.
If successful, Thika will become the fifth city in Kenya after Nakuru recently acquired city status to join Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu.
The governor further indicated that a technical committee had already been formed to seek views from the local residents as part of the process.
Among the strategies the governor is banking on to achieve this is the development of the Thika Industrial Smart City.
The Smart City will be dependent on information and communication technology to transform Thika into a modern metropolis.
“I have directed the County Executive Committee official in charge of housing, physical planning, municipal administration, and urban development, Salome Wainaina, to midwife the process,” Wamatangi told Nation.
The governor further indicated that the new city will be an industrial hub that will create jobs for thousands of Kenyans effectively improving their living standards.
Apart from job creation, the benefits of having city status are expected to trickle down to residents and also spill over to other areas of the county.
"It will open the floodgates to more money to fund the development of infrastructure, healthcare, water connectivity and markets,” Wamatangi noted.
Other benefits to the locals include improved street lighting, traffic lights, and major road upgrades with the Kenya National Highway Authority (KeNHA) already committing to expand roads in the town and dual part of the Thika-Garissa highway.
There are equally plans to formulate a new taxation regime to ensure taxes do not overburden already strained businesses and effectively reduce the cost of living.
Finally, the upgrade to city status will attract developers wishing to put up high-rise buildings in the town effectively providing more benefits to the locals.
Kenya has four cities, including Nairobi, Mombasa, Kisumu, and Nakuru.
