Siaya Governor James Orengo signed two charters at the Land survey and commission office in Siaya that will confirm Bondo and Ugunja as municipalities.
The process of upgrading identified towns was initiated five years ago with the aim of reviewing towns and urban centers in Siaya, and subsequently a report was given to the executive and submitted to the County Assembly of Siaya and the charters drafted.
The report recommended that two of the towns within Siaya be uplifted to municipality level with Bondo and Ugunja out of the 12 urban centers that were explored being upgraded.
Both Bondo and Ugunja combined have a population of more than 60,000 who are set to benefit from the new status with core services being brought closer to the residents of the new municipalities.
Siaya is now set to have three municipalities in total being Siaya town, Bondo and Ugunja.
The path towards the full grant of the municipalities is now officially underway awaiting the inauguration of the two municipalities, recruitment of the respective board members for both municipalities and their chairs.
“It is very important for us to celebrate an event like this when two of our towns are becoming municipalities,” said Governor James Orengo at the signing ceremony.
He also added that the promotion of Ugunja and Bondo into municipalities will serve as an engine for development of the residents who live in both towns.
“Bondo and Ugunja are developing at a very high rate so we saw it necessary to uplift them not only for the good of the residents but also to attract investment and various fund from the national kitty and international agencies,” added Governor James Orengo.
The Governor said that in the coming financial year the roads within Siaya municipality will be upgraded to make sure that more of them are tarmacked.
By Calvin Otieno
