Kenya, 14 November 2026– President William Ruto has said he has delivered on the promises he made to the Maa community before the 2022 General Election, pointing to the settlement of long-running land disputes and investments in infrastructure, healthcare, education and housing.
He spoke on Saturday at the closing ceremony of the Maa Cultural and Tourism Festival at Sekenani Gate in the Masai Mara Game Reserve, Narok County. Launched in 2014, the festival has grown into a major cultural and tourism event that brings together Maa communities from across Kenya. The President pledged continued financial support for the annual gathering, calling it an important national platform for celebrating Kenya’s cultural heritage and promoting tourism.
He praised the Maa for safeguarding their heritage, saying it has given Kenya a distinct identity <a href="https://absafricatv.com/world-leaders-head-to-asia-for-back-to/” title=”World leaders head to Asia for back-to”>worldwide.
“Kenya is known globally because of your culture. You have given us an identity. People worldwide know there is Maa culture in Kenya,” he said.
“We say thank you for what you are doing for this country,” he told the Maa people, who turned out in their thousands.
President Ruto said the Government had made considerable headway in addressing historical land injustices and in making sure communities received what was rightfully theirs. He said he had met his commitment on Kedong Ranch in Narok, where residents are now settled on 10,000 acres.
In Samburu, he said, Marmar Ranch has been returned to the county government and will be subdivided and allocated to residents.
On Maasai Mau Forest, he said the Government had honoured its pledge to resolve the long-standing ownership concerns by issuing a title deed to Narok County. He added that fencing is under way to mark clear boundaries between the forest and nearby settlements.
“We have given the title deed to the county government, and we are fencing off the forest to protect it from encroachment,” he said.
The President said the Government had resolved to return Amboseli National Park to Kajiado County, arguing that the local community’s interests deserve the same recognition as those of the people of Narok in the Masai Mara Game Reserve. He regretted that some individuals are using court cases to obstruct the transfer, but said his administration would answer such opposition with evidence.
On soda ash mining in Magadi, Kajiado County, the President said residents have not enjoyed meaningful benefits in more than a century. He announced that half of the 240,000 acres leased to Tata Chemicals Magadi Ltd will go back to the people of Kajiado. He said other investors are ready to set up value-addition ventures, including glass and chemical production, which would open up more economic opportunities for the community, the county government and the country.
He also announced that the Government had granted the request of the Ilchamus, a Maa-speaking community in Baringo County, for their own sub-county.
President Ruto said national transformation programmes are benefiting Narok, Kajiado and Samburu counties as much as any other, reaffirming his administration’s commitment to fair development that leaves no community or region behind.
In Narok County, he said, 300km of roads are under construction at a cost of KSh22 billion. Narok International Airport is nearing completion and is due to be commissioned early next year, while Kilgoris Airstrip is already complete.
On health, he said Narok Town Level 5 Hospital will be finished within a month, and the Government has set aside KSh 1.7 billion to build another Level 5 hospital in Kilgoris.
On tourism, the President said the Maa have contributed significantly to the growth of the sector, noting that international arrivals have risen from 1.4 million in 2022 to 2.8 million at present. He said the Government is investing in modern tourism facilities, including upgrading Bomas of Kenya into one of the most modern venues in sub-Saharan Africa, able to host major international meetings, exhibitions and conferences.
