Garissa County

Garissa County
County
Flag Coat of arms
Location in Kenya
Coordinates: 0°27′25″S 39°39′30″E / 0.45694°S 39.65833°E / -0.45694; 39.65833
Country	Kenya
Formed	4 March 2013
Capital	Garissa
Government
• Governor	Nathif Jama Adam
• Deputy Governor	Abdi Dagane Muhumed
• Senator	Abdul Mohammed Haji
• County woman representative	Amina Udgoon Siyad
Area
• Total	44,753 km2 (17,279 sq mi)
Elevation	1,138 m (3,734 ft)
Population  (2019)
• Total	1,513,530
• Density	34/km2 (88/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+3 (EAT)
Website	www.garissa.go.ke

Garissa County is an administrative county in Kenya. It is located in Eastern Kenya bordering Somalia to the East, Wajir County and Isiolo County to the North, Tana River County to the West and Lamu County to the South. Its capital and largest urban area is Garissa.

The county was created by the 2010 Constitution of Kenya as a new unit of the devolved government. Prior to the 2010 constitution, Garissa County was part of the North Eastern Province which was one of the former provinces of Kenya. The North Eastern Province was carved out of the then Northern Frontier District (NFD) prior to independence.

The county had a population of 841,353 at the 2019 Census, and a land area of about 44,753 km² (17,279 sq mi).^[1] The district is primarily inhabited by the Absame, Marehan, and Facaye Sade clans. After the Shifta War primarily fought by the Marehan who were given the title Shifta, the tribe were forced to either migrate to Jubaland or claim neighboring clans and thus a huge contingent can now be found in the Absame living as far as the west of the county.