Siaya County Governor James Orengo has highlighted the main factors behind the devolved unit’s low own-source revenue generation, 15 years into devolution.

Speaking on a local TV interview on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, Orengo noted that the lack of factories within Nyanza County is the major reason why his administration is facing the challenge of low own-source revenue generation.

”We are not doing very well on our own-source revenue, I must confess. One is that Siaya was like a backyard county; it used to be part of Central Nyanza, which included Kisumu District. A lot of factories, all the entities that count in economic terms, were in the Kisumu part. Even now, we do not have one single factory, but we are trying to change that,” Orengo said.

However, James Orengo added that his government has posted notable improvements in its three years in office. ”We are not where we were three years ago; we have automated our systems, and we are about to get there. When I became governor, our annual own-source revenue was about Ksh300 million. In the last financial year, we were about Ksh900 million. There is tremendous progress,” the governor added.

Orengo also revealed that the County Government of Siaya is planning to establish a valuation roll that will play a key role in taxation at the grassroots and improve the devolved unit’s own-source revenue generation.

Nuclear power project

In the same interview, Orengo supported the proposed nuclear power plant establishment in Siaya, insisting that the project will boost employment rates in the devolved unit and the nearby regions.

Elsewhere, Energy and Petroleum Cabinet Secretary Opiyo Wandayi said that the Siaya nuclear power plant aims to enhance electricity access across the country.

He added that the county government of Siaya is planning to utilise local higher learning institutions to equip the locals with the needed skills in the particular field as preparations for the nuclear power plants’ establishments continue.

”The plant is going to employ quite a few people. One of the things we are trying to do is to create a faculty at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University to train people with the necessary skills. The plant will also see Siaya County get electricity at a cheaper cost to promote industrialisation,” Orengo said.