Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), the impact is beginning to take root in rural counties across Kenya. In Kitui, where livestock is not only a cultural asset but also a primary source of livelihood, this transformation is being felt through renewed hope and tangible action.
Principal Secretary for Livestock Development, Mr. Jonathan Mueke, today joined Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and other leaders in Zombe, Kitui East, for a high-energy Women and Youth Empowerment Program. The event drew hundreds of residents who came to witness a government working to empower them where it matters most — at the grassroots.
Speaking at the event, PS Mueke underscored the centrality of livestock to Kenya’s rural economy and reiterated the State Department’s commitment to supporting smallholder farmers, especially women and youth, to transition from subsistence practices to viable commercial enterprises. He noted that under BETA, livestock is not just about rearing animals — it is about creating wealth, building resilience, and anchoring rural dignity in economic independence.
He explained how the government, through his department, is delivering services tailored to the realities of communities in arid and semi-arid lands like Kitui. Whether it’s through community-based disease control campaigns, construction of feedlots, or support for agro-pastoral youth cooperatives, the State is walking hand in hand with its people. The goal, he said, is to turn livestock into a truly bankable asset for every household — one that feeds, funds, and sustains families.
Mueke’s message aligned seamlessly with broader development milestones currently underway in Kitui. He praised the planned construction of the Zombe–Kyuluni Road, which is expected to open up trade and reduce transport challenges for livestock producers in the region. He also welcomed the government’s allocation of KSh 800 million for compensation along the Kibwezi–Mutomo–Kitui Road, a project that promises to unlock market access and bring remote communities closer to opportunity.
Electricity, too, is reaching where it was once thought impossible — with 18,000 households in Kitui now set to be connected to the national grid. According to Mueke, infrastructure, energy, and economic empowerment are not isolated developments, but part of a coordinated national strategy that sees the farmer, the trader, and the herder as central to Kenya’s next economic leap.
“In Kitui, we are not only lighting homes,” Mueke said. “We are lighting up the potential of every woman and youth involved in livestock. We are lighting the path to self-reliance.”
Its clear that the State Department for Livestock Development is not just a policy — it is personal and reflecting a government that is listening, responding, and most importantly, delivering. With leaders like PS Jonathan Mueke at the forefront, the Bottom-Up agenda is no longer a promise for the future; it is a reality unfolding in villages like Zombe — one household, one herd, one youth at a time.
