President William Ruto's second tour of Trans Nzoia came with a long list of figures attached. The story says he used the commitments to counter criticism of his administration and to argue that the county had not been left out of the national development agenda.
The largest single health item is Sh1 billion for a new hospital, which he said he would launch on Friday. He framed it as national government stepping in where the county administration had failed at Wamalwa Kijana Referral Hospital. On roads, he announced Sh18 billion for tarmacking more than 270 kilometres, plus Sh7 billion for expanding and recarpeting the Maili Tisa-Kitale road.
Other pledges covered trade, housing and power. He announced Sh190 million for the ongoing Kiminini modern market and Sh1.5 billion for 15 modern markets across the county, Sh17 billion for affordable housing and hostels meant to accommodate more than 10,000 students, and Sh10 billion for a rural electrification programme targeting more than 10,000 households. On health financing, he said 410,000 people in the county had registered under the Social Health Authority.
All of these figures are Ruto's own, and the story gives no breakdown of which projects are new, which are continuing, or when money will be released. The story itself notes that the hospital proposal raises questions about the respective roles of national and county governments in health services, and about the status of the existing referral hospital. He promised more launches on Friday.
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