Nyeri Poised to Become World’s Scouting City with New Partnership

NYERI — The County Government of Nyeri and the Kenya Scouts Association are nearing the completion of discussions to designate Nyeri as the Scouting City of the World, a move that celebrates the city’s historical significance to the global scouting movement.

According to Kenya News Agency, County Executive Committee Member for Trade, Tourism, and Cooperatives, the partnership is in its final stages, with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) expected to be signed in March.

The MOU aims to establish a funding framework for scouting activities and facilitate the expansion of the scouts’ movement, which boasts 2.2 million registered members in Kenya. “We are well on our way to making Nyeri the Scouting city of the world,” Kendi stated during a briefing at the Baden Powell gardens in Nyeri, as preparations were underway to mark the 167th Founders Day, celebrating the birthday of scouting founder Lord Baden Powell and the 115th anniversary of scouting in Kenya.

Present at the event were key figures from the Scouting Association, including Chief Executive Officer Moses Danda and Deputy Chief Commissioner Alice Kihungi, alongside Eliud Wambua, the officer in charge of scouting at the Ministry of Education. Danda highlighted the proposal to have the annual Founder’s Day recognized as a global event, emphasizing the potential to unlock significant tourism and business opportunities for Nyeri and Kenya as a whole.

The annual celebration attracts scouts from across the globe to Nyeri every February, commemorating Lord Baden Powell, who chose Nyeri as his final resting place. “The fact that Baden Powell chose to have his remains interred here in Nyeri is a chance for us to use this effectively for the benefit of Kenya and Nyeri in particular,” Danda explained.

Nyeri is home to the Baden Powell gardens and the Paxtu Museum, located within the Outspan Hotel, where Powell spent the final years of his life. The museum houses Powell’s relics, drawing visitors interested in the history of scouting. This year’s Founders Day celebrations, themed “Scouts Championing Environmental Sustainability through Innovation,” included a tree-planting initiative at Tumutumu Hill in Mathira, in line with the presidential directive to plant at least 15 billion trees by 2032.

The initiative to name Nyeri as the Scouting City of the World represents a significant step in honoring the legacy of Lord Baden Powell and leveraging the city’s unique historical connection to the scouting movement to promote tourism, community engagement, and environmental conservation.