Machakos, Bomet topple Western in radio listenership

Radio is most listened to in Machakos and Bomet counties, dethroning western Kenya, which has commanded listenership for decades.

An analytical report on the uptake of ICT based on the Kenya Demographic Health Survey, 2022, shows that Machakos County had the highest proportion of males who listened to radio, at 99.5 per cent, whereas Bomet County had the highest proportion, at 91.1 per cent.

This means that at least nine out of ten people in those counties are actively listening to radio stations, against a national average of 80 per cent for both men and women.

Other counties with high radio listenership in the country include Narok, Kisumu, Makueni, Nandi for men and Vihiga Nyandarua, Kiambu and Murang’a for women.

Radio is least listened to in Mandera county with an average of 20 per cent. According to the report, only 35 per cent of men in the county and a paltry 5.5 per cent of women tune in.

Previous reports ranked Western Kenya highest with nearly nine in every 10 residents ( 85 per cent) listening to the radio.

The Audience Measurement and Industry Trends Report indicated that very few people in North Eastern listen to the radio, at 62 per cent, with Nairobi having the second lowest listenership, at 69 percent.

The report further indicates that shows that radio listenership among males who were widowed at the time of the survey was the highest at 98.5 per cent.

The highest proportion of females who listened to the radio were currently living with their partners ( 79.3  per cent).

The results also showed that there was a higher use of the internet by married men ( 58.9%) or men living with partners ( 62.8%) compared to their female counterparts.

Among divorced women ( 42.4%) or separated women ( 47.9%), there was a higher use of the internet compared to their male counterparts at 37.8 and 45.5 per cent, respectively.

Nationally, the percentage of males that listened to the radio at least once a week was 71.1 per cent while that of females was 62.2 per cent.

In urban areas, the frequency was 63 per cent of males and 61.1 per cent of females. Listenership in rural areas, 76.5 per cent of males and 62.9 per cent of females listened to the radio at least once a week.

Analysis by age group showed that those between 35-44 had the highest regular listenership among males ( 77.3%), while the 25-34 age group had the highest among females ( 64.2%).

Uasin Gishu County recorded the highest proportion of males that watched TV ( 98.2%) whereas Kiambu County reported the highest proportion of females watching TV at 90.5 per cent as shown in Figure 2.17.

Turkana, Tana River, Wajir and Mandera counties recorded the smallest proportion of both males and females watching TV.

Nationally, the proportion of males and females that used the internet was 56.2 and 44.2 per cent, respectively.

Nairobi City County had the highest proportion of males and females that used the internet at 89.7 and 76.4 per cent, respectively.

Kiambu and Uasin Gishu counties were among the top five counties for males and females that used the internet whereas Mandera, Tana River and Turkana counties were among the bottom five counties that used the internet.

Nationally, 80.4 per cent of males and 77.5 per cent of females owned a mobile phone, out of which 49.1 per cent of males and 42.7 per cent of females owned a smartphone.

In the 12 months preceding the survey, 56.2 per cent of males and 44.2 per cent of females used the internet at least once.

A significant proportion of males ( 71.1%) and females ( 62.2%) listened to the radio at least once a week. Television viewership was also high at 59.6 per cent of males and 55.2 per cent of females watching at least once a week.

However, the proportion of males who read a newspaper at least once a week before the survey declined from 62.8 per cent in 2014 to 39 per cent in 2022, while that of females dropped from 38.6 per cent in 2014 to 20.1 per cent in 2022.

The proportion of households with at least one member owning a mobile phone stood at 94.6 per cent at the national level.

Similarly, household ownership of mobile phones stood at 97.8 per cent and 93 per cent in urban areas and rural areas, respectively.

Additionally, 93.5 per cent of households used mobile phones for financial transactions, while the proportion of households in urban areas was 97.2 per cent and 91.5 per cent in rural areas.

The proportion of households with at least one member registered for mobile money services was 94.8 per cent at the national level, 98.2 per cent and 93per cent in urban and rural areas, respectively.

Nationally, ownership of radio, television and computers by households stood at 65.8 per cent, 53.4 per cent and 8.7 per cent, respectively.

The proportion of households in the rural areas that owned radio, television and computer stood at 62.2 per cent, 39.7 per cent and 3.4 per cent, respectively.

On the other hand, 72.5 per cent, 79.2 per cent and 18.5 per cent of the households in urban areas owned radio, television, and computer, respectively.

Access to electricity significantly drives ICT adoption, as households with reliable power are more likely to use various ICT devices and internet services.

Among households with electricity, 97.6 per cent owned mobile phones, 70.9 per cent owned televisions, and 74.0 per cent owned radios.